


Pas à Pas

by VixenOfTheNight



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Ballet AU if you squint, Break Dance AU, F/M, Human Kwami, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-22
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-05-28 10:44:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6325915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VixenOfTheNight/pseuds/VixenOfTheNight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a costume designer that longs for the thrill of living her dreams.  Adrien Agreste is the golden ballet boy who longs for freedom to be who he really is.  Their destinies will drive them underground to express their passions- and make Paris shake. Breakdance AU! Created by starrycove on tumblr</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Take the Lead

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! So this is my contribution to the Break dance AU created by starrycove on tumblr. Her designs are truly great and I am weak for dancers, thus this was born. I also want to credit piku-chan on tumblr for her designs of Tikki and Plagg for her Cinderella AU that I used as inspiration for my renderings of human kwami. I apologize for the actual lack of dance but I have to set the stage, you know?
> 
> I wanted to post this to see the general response if people would want more so please review and let me know! Kudos are also appreciated (I'll interpret them as a positive review).   
> Thank you all so much for reading. Ciao!

Marinette Dupain-Cheng sipped on her coffee mug as she rushed across the bustling streets of downtown Paris in a pair of dark jeans and a pink pea coat, her short hair blowing in the breeze with each step. She had to remind herself to re-plug in her alarm clock every time she uses her laptop. “Stupid little apartment with limited electrical plugs...” Marinette mumbled as she entered the large building with the word Agreste labeled above the large glass doorway. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, a French-Chinese girl of a mere 18 years, had applied to the academy herself a few months ago with high hopes to attend the prestigious dancing school. In few words, she ended up getting in not as a dancer but as a designer, a hobby of hers. Now she was one of the few members that worked on-sight costume designers of the world renowned Agreste Ballet Academy and owned by the famous Gabriel Agreste. It wasn’t what she imagined for her future, but it was better than being jobless. 

Rushing into the design office, the sound of her flats echoing her presence to the room, she plopped all her things on her messy desk with post-it notes of messages and half-drawn sketches. She took one more sip from her to-go cup, unsure when she would see it again; she was always running about in the morning and with her late nights it was necessary for her to get as much caffeine as possible. 

“Marinette!” A calm but firm voice came from next to her, “Thank goodness, you’re finally here.” A woman with burgundy hair came out of the nearby office dressed in a purple suit with pointed glasses. 

“I’m sorry Ms. Sancoeur, my alarm clock broke overnight.” Marinette removed her coat, draping it over the back of her chair.

“Please, make an investment of a good clock for future reference.” Natalie Sancoeur was the third highest member of the Agreste Dance Academy. From what Marinette could gather from staff around the school, she used to be second in command until Gabriel Agreste brought in a new assistant out of nowhere with a really odd sounding name. She didn’t speak about it much nor had Marinette never seen Mr. Agreste and his assistant in person. “The dress in Practice room A, fourth floor ripped again, you need to go fix it before the class comes.”

“Yes Ms. Sancoeur.” Marinette took a pin cushion and thread, slid it on her wrist and took off up flights of stairs. 

She stumbled into the practice room, lined full-wall mirrors and balance bars, sunlight exposing the swarms of dust particles in the still air. She smiled and sighed, letting her eyes drift the expanse of the mirror and windows. She enjoyed times like this, when the rooms were peaceful and empty, like they were begging for someone to enter and dance away as if no one was watching. She was tempted to dance like no one was watching. 

“I’m sorry is this room taken?” 

Well she thought she was alone. 

Marinette jumped as the voice, physically moving herself from the doorway, turning around and waving her hands apologetically, “No of course not! Sorry do you need this… room?” 

Marinette was glad she actually opened her eyes because the a god stood before her. A boy around her age with hair that glowed like the sun and eyes that resembled emeralds. He was dressed in a set of white sweatshirt and grey sweatpants and orange converse. 

“I just wanted to get some extra practice in before class,” The boy said as he brushed his hand across his neck, “I can find find another if you’re using this room.”

Marinette blinked once then realized he thought she was a student here, “Oh! Oh no I’m sorry I’m not a student, I’m just here to fix one of the dresses in the back room.” She explained quickly, moving towards the small closet near the corner of the room, “Please use the room all you want, I can leave if I’m distracting you, just let me know.”

The boy smiled, “You’re fine… I-I mean you’ll be fine! Thanks,”

Marinette only smiled back before she looked at the backroom and pull out the pale pink dress with the clear rip in the side. She sighed, “This is the third time this week.” She had hoped the dancers would be nicer to the dresses, but it was clear they didn’t care about the clothing they wore. She sat down, pulled pins from the cushion on her arm arm and the thread in her pocket and began to sew the rip closed and hid it between the fabric creases. 

“That’s Sabrina’s dress.” The male voice from behind her, and she darted her head up to see the boy leaning in the doorway, curious as to what she was doing. In her moment of distraction the needle plunged into her thumb, letting out an ouch of pain. 

“I’m sorry are you okay?” He was immediately by her side, taking her hand to make sure the damage wasn’t life threatening. 

The minute their hands met, their eyes of sapphire and emerald met. A warm feeling penetrated Marinette’s chest and flowed through her body. This boy was being so kind to her, for no reason at all! It made her heart quicken as she tried to regain some semblance of function as it felt his the green of his eyes was a field she wanted to explore forever. He helped pull her to her feet, collecting the dress on the ground. 

“N- No, I’m okay.” She stuttered out, “Uh, thank you-?”

“It’s no problem, uh,” He smiled again and it made her legs weak, “I’m sorry I don’t know your name.”

“Marinette!” She squeaked, her hands pulled away as her boss stood expectantly, “Marinette, I need you to gather the curtains from the mock stage on the ground floor!”

“Y-Yes Ms. Sancouer!” She didn’t look back as she ran off, out the room to her next task, praying no one would see her red face. 

The woman sighed, before turning and bowing to the boy in the room, “Terribly sorry about the interruption Adrien.”

“Everything is fine Natalie, thank you.” He assured her, rubbing the fabric of the dress across his fingers with a small smile on his lips, _and thank you Marinette… ___

__\---_ _

__Classes went by in a blur for Adrien. Everyday felt like the same- same moves, same music and same blank faces of concentration. Show up to class, warm ups, part lecture, demonstration- half of class practices, other half waits, switch, selected best students perform for the class, pack up leave for next class. Over and over and over again, he could set a watch to a regimen._ _

__Heck, he HAD set a watch to the regimen! He would wear it if it wasn’t against dress code._ _

__He sighed as he finished the adage- the pilés, développé,battement dégagé and multiple pirouettes- and leaned against the wall on the opposite side of the room. He tried to focus on something to keep him in the present, like the sun flooding in the windows. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes, the ticking of the small clock on the wall becoming louder and louder in his ears._ _

___Tick, Tock, Do that again, Tick-Tock, Straighten your form, Tick-Tock, No Escape… ____ _

____“ADRIEN!”_ _ _ _

____He was pulled from his meditative state and opened this eyes to bleach blond hair and way too much makeup._ _ _ _

____“Sorry, Chloe, what did you want?”_ _ _ _

____“Monsieur Dupoi wants us to do the Pas de Deux!” She had already taken his hand, dragging him out to center stage and getting into position._ _ _ _

____“Wait, didn’t he make us do this yesterday? And the day before THAT?” His eyes darted across the crowd and the members he knew to be good dancers, all of then looking away to the moment in either anger or annoyance._ _ _ _

____“It’s not MY fault we’re the best dancers in class, sweetie!” Chloe laughed of his concern, setting her arms into position, “Just be ready to catch me Adriekins!”_ _ _ _

____Best dancers? More like most Popular… _Adrien sighed with the musical cue and positioned his arms accordingly. He could NOT wait for a break.__ _ _ _

_____\---_ _ _ _ _

_____Lunch break couldn’t have been more welcomed for Marinette. Natalie had her running all over the school fixing props and curtains, organizing the multiple prop rooms and fitting a whole group of transfers for the up incoming seasonal play. Normally she would just eat something at her desk but her rush to leave this morning left her lunch at home. She knew this little cafe a few blocks down she had wanted to try for a while, so she grabbed her coat and bag and went out into the bustling city._ _ _ _ _

_____The cool air was a blessing against her skin as her running that morning had gotten her quite hot. Traveling a few blocks, she looked at the corner and saw the small establishment with a chalkboard sign that spelled out The Lucky Bug with a small ladybug doodled on the top of the T. Amused by the cute charm, she pushed open the door and entered, her eyes catching the large display case with all the goodies inside- lined with small cupcakes, muffins, cookies, macaroons and tarts. A strawberry tart caught her eye and she ordered one with a side of hot tea, paid for the treat and went to find a table. There was a small two seat round table by the window and she couldn’t pass it up. She sat down on the chair on the right and took off her coat and bag, turning to hang them on the back of her chair. When she turned back,to her surprise, another person had taken the chair across from her._ _ _ _ _

_____“Ah! I’m sorry I didn’t know this table was taken!”_ _ _ _ _

_____“I simply left my bag to use the restroom, I’m sorry I should have taken it!”_ _ _ _ _

_____Marinette and the woman started apologizing over each other until a cafe worker brought Marinette her tart and tea, forcing to the two females to stop talking and breathe._ _ _ _ _

_____“Sorry, let’s begin that again,” The woman smiled warmly as she brought her bag into her lap, “I’m sorry for taking your table, it’s my usual and I’m just programmed on habit to sit here. I can leave if that makes you uncomfortable?”_ _ _ _ _

_____The woman had an interesting look; fair skin with a rich, red bob of a hairstyle, some odd strands flicking up outta place, matched with a burgundy long sleeved, v-neck silk top that covered most of her body and on her ears was a pair of stud red earrings with five black dots. Marinette had to admit the woman seems very nice and well-spoken; something about her just seemed to make Marinette more interested in who she was._ _ _ _ _

_____“No, no you’re perfectly fine. I wouldn’t mind the company if you don’t mind that is?”_ _ _ _ _

_____The woman nodded, her light blue eyes sparkled, “I’d love the company, My name is Tikki.”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Tikki?” She repeated the name hesitantly, as if she had heard her wrong._ _ _ _ _

_____“It’s more of a nickname I’m called, is that weird?”_ _ _ _ _

_____“No! No I just never heard of such a name before,” Marinette recovered, “My name is Marinette.”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Marinette.” The red woman repeated as she smiled, “It fits you. So what do you do Marinette?”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Thank you, I work at the Agreste Dance Academy as a costume designer/prop fixer/emergency seamstress.” She giggled as she added the duties onto the title of her job, “I applied a few moths ago and was…. Rejected. I got hired as a designer there later and I’ve been there ever since.”_ _ _ _ _

_____“I’m sorry you didn’t get in.” Tikki eyes saddened with empathy, “It’s a horrible feeling to have your hopes be denied.”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Yes it is,” The girl nodded as she took a sip of tea, “I don’t think it’s truly gone and I’d love to dance again, just to move and be appreciated again for my talents. Being in those rooms make me feel like a failure sometimes.”_ _ _ _ _

_____The woman picked up her cup and sipped as well, “You just need a change of venue, a chance to shine and you could do anything.” The woman looked at her, her eyes portraying an emotion Marinette could only describe as a kindred spirit._ _ _ _ _

_____“Yeah I guess…”_ _ _ _ _

_____“If you would pardon my boldness I have an offer for you.” Tikki crossed her legs and the designer could see the dark jeans and heeled boots she wore poking out from under the table. Marinette could only wrinkle her brow before Tikki continued, “I was once a dance instructor many years ago and I have a studio but I lack a partner to practice with. Would you be interested in joining me?”_ _ _ _ _

_____Marinette paused, twisting her fork with a piece of tart attached to the edges. She had a lot to do for her job, but the promise of dancing again was so tempting to take. Could she really trust this woman?_ _ _ _ _

_____As if the woman read her mind, she finished her cup and stood up, “I know this is a lot to take in so you can think about it as long as you need to. Here’s my card.” She reached into the large bag and pulled out a white card, holding it out for the young woman to take, which after a moment of hesitation- she did._ _ _ _ _

_____“I hope to hear from you soon Marinette.” She smiled warmly and walked away, taking the cookie from her plate and walked out._ _ _ _ _

_____Marinette watched the lady in red leave before she examined the card- it was primarily white and glossy with a line drawing of a ladybug decorating the front. She flipped it over and on the back simply read Miraculous with a phone number and an address._ _ _ _ _

_____She chewed her lip as she stabbed at the tart before her, slipping the card away in her purse._ _ _ _ _

_____\---_ _ _ _ _

_____Lunch was a welcomed break for Adrien. The last couple of hours Chloe had never separated from his side, doing routine after routine. He was friends with Chloe, she was one of his only friends, but she personality was a bit overbearing at times. He look a baseball cap out of his bag, descended down the stairs and out into the the streets of Paris. As he walked down the street, he slipped the cap on his head to avoid being seen by admirers or nosy paparazzi. Walking down the street, he passed an announcement board, a poster for the upcoming show at the Academy was plastered across it- and he was there in all his elegant Agreste glory. It was amazing for him to think that with everyone knew his name yet he felt alone._ _ _ _ _

_____He walked a bit longer, his eyes locked to the sidewalk so lost in his head when he almost ran into a sign. Looking up he saw it was an iron sign that read The Black Cat’s Corner, it looked like some cafe. Noting how parched he was, Adrien shrugged and entered the shop, the door opening to the sound of a bell. It was moderately crowded and he quietly hoped he wouldn't be noticed here. After quickly ordering a couple croissants and a large hot chocolate (His diet could go screw itself- after dealing with Chloe all day he could use a treat) he slipped to the back with stools lining the black marble bar. Waiting for his order to be called, he adjusted his cap and was suddenly engulfed by a figure bigger than him. “Wha-?!”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Sorry.” The figure backed off immediately, “Crowd can be brutal at lunch time.”_ _ _ _ _

_____Adrien looked the man over as he backed away. He was tall, with a lean build dressed mostly in black sweatshirt sweatpants and black sneakers with vibrant green laces. When the man looked up from wiping himself off, a silver ring on his hand; and Adrien could see the dark complexion of his skin, his messy black hair and pencil-thin mustache connected to a just as thin beard and vibrant green eyes._ _ _ _ _

_____Looking around, he noticed the place was extremely busy and no other tables seemed open, “It's no problem. You can sit if you want, I shouldn't be here much longer.”_ _ _ _ _

_____The man looked surprised for a moment before smirking, “Jeez, I don't think I'm that old yet kid.”_ _ _ _ _

_____Adrien realizing what he said, tried to recover, “No I didn't mean-”_ _ _ _ _

_____“Relax I'm just pulling your leg,” the man chuckles before sitting on the stool with his legs crossed, “And I'd like to know the name of the person I fooled got bragging rights.”_ _ _ _ _

_____Now it was Adrien’s turn to look surprised and get nervous, “You don't know who I am?”_ _ _ _ _

_____The man angled his head forward while his neon eyes pierced the lighting of the cafe, “Should I?”_ _ _ _ _

_______Oh I don’t know, just because my face is plastered all over Paris,_ even with the thoughts running through his head; the look made the famous danseur calm down. It was entirely possible this guy didn’t know a thing about the ballet so he would have no idea who he was, and the fact that Adrien needed to assure himself this made him sightly question his sanity. __ _ _ _ _

_______“I’m Adrien.” The boy finally consented, holding out his hand to shake. The man quirked a brow before he took his hand._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“Plagg.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“Plagg.” Adrien repeated with a smile growing on his face._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______The dark clothed man shrugged, “Yeah, nicknames and all that; not important. So what do you do Adrien?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______The blond paused for a heartbeat, “I’m a… dancer. I am going through school now and it's fine and all but…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“But?” Plagg inquired further, now intrigued._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______Adrien shifted to rub his neck, “It’s so… stagnant. It’s the same practices each day and it’s suffocating sometimes. I just feel like I could do so much-”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“More?” Plagg finished, and Adrien nodded in agreement. “Well aren’t you lucky, I’m looking for a dance partner. Low key stuff, if you’re interested.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______From the counter Adrien’s name was called, but Plagg went up and grabbed it before Adrien could react. Bringing the bag and drink back, he handed them to Adrien, with that smirk on his face. “You got time to think about it,when you decide call the number on the card. See ya Kid.” That was all he said before he turned and left._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______“Wha-Wait! What card?!” Adrien tried to get the words out, but Plagg was long gone. The blond placed the bag of croissants down to adjust his hold on his hot chocolate when his fingers brushed something tucked inside the heat protector of the cup. It was a black business card, with white lines drawing a cat’s paw on the front; when he turned it over there only was the word Miraculous- with a phone number and a street address._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______Adrien secured the card in his bag before taking his food and heading back to the school- looking forward to the day to end so he could make a phone call._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_______That night- two important phone calls were made- and answered._ _ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Worth It

Both Marinette and Adrien had listened very carefully to their given instructions. Both were told to pack a bag of loose clothing and change of sneakers and go to the address labeled on their cards at sunset. Both trekked down the darkening streets, through quiet neighborhoods with wavering spirits before coming to their destinations. It was an apartment building with a broken main staircase impossible to use- which lead to the next instruction. 

They were told to go into the alley next to the building and find the fire escape. They each walked down an alley next to their buildings and saw weather worn fire escapes on the side of the building and the ladder that lead to the ground elevated out of reach. With some jumping effort, both got up to ladder, pulling the rusted, screeching metal down before climbing it to the first floor. 

They were told to go up four stories and look for a window with a ladybug/cat sticker on the molding, finding the sticker meant they were on the right floor. The staircase reeked of rusting iron and rattled a little with each step as they ascended up before they found the marker. They watched tried for open the window and found it gave way and the slipped inside, closing it behind them. 

Then they walked down the dark corridors, the wooden floors creaking under their feet, toward the room at the end of the hall, where the only light was glowing. 

\---  
Marinette carefully leaned into the room, expecting to find nobody there and all this to be a big joke for her to never tell anyone. However, tot her genuine surprise, the lit room was extremely clean, a big dancing room with wooden floors and a wall of mirrors; it rivaled the practice rooms of the academy. Softer rap music music was coming from the speakers and Tikki, dressed in white pants, a red hoodie covered in small black dots and red vans, currently in a handstand by her one hand, her legs angled in a way that it didn’t seem possible.

A red snap-back was perched on the floor next to her head as she turned to notice her visitor, “Marinette! Welcome!”

“You’re actually here…” Marinette said in shock, “I seriously thought this was a prank or something.”

Tikki laughed, the sound like bells in Marinette’s ears, and righted herself in a back flip “Well, I’m here. I assume you want to dance?”

Marinette nodded, gathering courage to actually enter the room. She still had her coat, her work clothes- a long sleeved white and pink shirt, jeans and boots. She shifted nervously, “So, what kind of dancing we’re doing?”

Tikki jobbed over to the laptop and silenced the music with a flick of her finger. “I know you wanted to do ballet at the academy, but he way you were talking, about coming back from your audition. I thought, you could use a confidence booster. The best confidence booster I can think of is Break Dance.”

“Break Dance?” Marinette asked jokingly, “Me? Break Dancing? This has to be a joke.”

“You don’t think you can do it?” Tikki quirked her head as if expecting this resistance.

“Can’t do it?! Tikki look at me! I’m NOT a break dancer! Heck I’m not even a ballet dancer!” The girl started pacing up and down the room.

“You really think so?”

“YES!” Marinette cried in desperation. 

Tikki only gave a girl a moment to catch her breath after her rant, “Alright, I can’t force you to do this. Since you’re already here, let’s do this one session and if you still don’t feel comfortable, you can leave and never come back. I won’t hold it against you or ask questions. Deal?”

The red woman extended her hand and the dark haired girl looked at it like it was about to bite her. She weighed her options-she could turn around and walk away, leave this and go back to her pity job or… or she could try.

“Deal.” Marinette shook her hand. 

“Great!” Tikki lightened up, “Did your clothes to change into?” The french-chinese girl, showed the bag in her hand, “Fantastic! There’s a bathroom next door you can change into.”

\---  
Adrien walked up to the ajar door that lead to a lit room- lined with mirror and solid wood floors. His eyes caught sight of a figure standing in the corner of the room. It was Plagg, still dressing in black- but his sweatsuit had been traded for a pair of black track pants and a tank top; black vans on his feet and a black snap-back with small kitten ears attached on top. He was facing a computer screen and hadn’t appeared to notice his presence. He opened the door and walked toward him, he was still oblivious to him being there. 

Adrien scrunched his brow, pretty sure he wasn’t early. “Hey Plagg.”

Plagg must have jumped a foot in the air in fright. He spun around to see the boy there and released a breath he wasn’t holding, “Jeez, kid, I oughta put a bell on you.”

Adrien couldn’t help rub his neck again, “Sorry, am I early?”

“Nah, you’re fine, I was doing some last minute planning.” Plagg shrugged as he adjusted his hat, “So, you really wanna do this?”

Adrien straightened his back, “I’m here am I not?”

A cheshire smile crawled across Plagg’s face, “Yes, yes you are. Changing room is one room over.”  
\--  
Tikki had just selected a track when Marinette walked back in the room.

She had changed her look, but her hair was still brushing her shoulders. She was now wearing a pink long sleeved crop-top with ‘Princess’ inscribed on the front and grey fitting leggings with pink lining and pink tennis shoes. As she walked, she was sliding on pink fingerless gloves on her hands that were slightly shaking. 

“Nice color palette.” Tikki complimented as Marinette smiled, pink was one of her favorite colors and she had worn it for as long as she could remember. After warming up and stretching, Tikki and Mari took stances with their backs to the mirror. 

“Since it’s day one, we’re gonna take it slow.” Tikki stated, “This dance is fun, pretty basic to master and can be improved upon as you learn more foundation.”

Mari nodded but still said, “Foundation?” 

“Basic moves done by b-boys and b-girls alike.” Tikki looked over to see Marinette blankly looking at her. “You know what we’ll do vocabulary later; let’s just start the move set.”

Tikki told Marinette to watch as Tikki too the backward facing position first, then she spun around slow but smoothly, lowering her body and spreading her legs. She then took her arms, lifted then perpendicular to her body and laced her finger on top of each other; bent her arms into her chest and out to her sides then brought her right arm back behind her and shot her left hand in the air, twisting her body to the left slightly and bent and raised her left knee, as if she was posing. 

Marinette watched the slow steps closely as Tikki finished and tried to do them along with her. After a few tries, she got it down and Tikki added more, repeating the hand motions, then stuck her right fist out, turned to the right and bent and raised her right knee, then back on her feet. 

This time she got it in two tries.

Then Tikki added to that, from the previous stance, brought her left hand to her hip and her waves her right hand in the air back and forth two times before dragging the right hand across the back of her head while swaying her hips to the right in an exaggerated motion. 

Marinette picked it up immediately.

This went on for 20 minutes until Marinette has the move set down. “Alright let’s do it to the music.” Tikki bounced over to the computer and let Marinette hear the song first. It was a recent pop number titled ‘Worth It’ released by a girl group. After hearing the song a bit and trying the moves Mari declared she felt comfortable enough to try it in full. Tikki nodded and replayed the song, getting into position beside Marinette and the let the intro play out and counted them in, “5,6,7-8!”

They both spun around on a dime and went into the arm and leg movements, swirling around their heads and swayed their hips. They then clasped their hands and moved them in a rectangular shape across their chests and hips, shifting weight into each hip two times before extending their left arm and fist and doing another weight shift again. They both took two steps forward with stride before pointing their right leg and foot while lifting their arms up and down then spun 360 degrees and posing with their left leg bent and right leg straight. Then the moon stepped to the right twice and swirled their heads again, bringing their right legs out to point before dropping into a squat with their legs pushed out to the sides, forming triangles. A quick bounce had their legs straightened and they leaned down, sliding their hand up their legs, until they were on their thighs. Their upper bodies jutted out straight where they twisted them to the left before straightening up and pushed their hips forward slightly, draping their hands up their body and leaning leaning their arms back and snapping their finger forward, bringing legs together. From there, their arms circled as their legs did a partial cha-cha step, before arms extended out to point at their reflections, then pulling in quick, right foot off the ground, locking. After dropping into another squat, they straightened back up, arms crossed across chests and pushing their chest forward, popping. They shifted arms to the right and a step the left before pulling limbs back in and extending arms up and pointed toe out to the right in another pose. That arm was placed on the hip and their body’s popped again, leading to another step in and out and head shake. Then a quick spin lead to Marinette bringing her leg up till it was pointed at the ceiling while Tikki dropped and spun on the floor. Shooting back up the teacher stood next to the pupil as she took two steps back and rolled her hips up as she pointed with her left toe to the ground. Shimmying her shoulders, Marinette stepped behind Tikki and followed as she did another two-step, slapping her palms together then swaying as she took two steps back. A few skips forward had the two side by side, hips swaying twice as both struck a pose, hips gyrated twice and a box step before sliding back into place. Striking a hand-under-chin pose with open legs, the girls stepped once out to the left, swinging it to the front before dipping into a grind. The two did tow mores in-place steps before turning side-ways and popping with legs spread with arms up and down before dragging hands up their body and tightly rolling their bodies forward. They did this twice, hoping their bodies forward which each body roll then turned to face the mirror and did the arm and leg motions from the beginning with the head swerve and hip sway and jumped into a cocky standing pose and nodded their heads. 

The song played on as Marinette looked at her hair all mussed and her body sweating but the ever present smile on her face told her everything she needed to know. She felt amazing. SHe couldn’t stop smiling.

And neither could Tikki.  
\---  
Adrien re-entered the room, dressed in jeans, orange converse and a black t-shirt with three lines of orange, green and blue colors. Plagg gave him a once over, before nodding in approval, “Alright, before we start I need to see you do a couple of things.”

Adrien nodded as he took a stance next to Plagg, expecting some sort of verbal command. Instead Plagg reached over and grabbed the edge of his shirt, pulling it up, exposing his chest and stomach.

“W-WHAT THE HELL?!” Adrien jumped away, like he had just been burned.

“I need to see what kind of muscle structure you have kid.” Plagg explained with no sense of apology in his voice. “Break dancing requires a lot of strength and body control.”

“Break dancing? We’re gonna be break dancing?” The boy questioned, “And you could have asked…”

The dark skinned dancer merely shrugged, “If you wanna.”

A confident smile crept onto the danseur’s face, “What do yo want me to do?”

“Handstand- hold it for a minute.” Adrien immediately pressed his hands against the ground and propped his up in the air, balancing perfectly. Plagg only tilted his head and walked around and examined the boy defying gravity. After about 30 seconds passed, Plagg spoke again “Balance on your right hand.” He complied, bring his hand out to the right and then to his side and after another 15 seconds he replaced his right hand and removed his left hand. The minute passed and Adrien felt his breath became short, a terrible pounding sensation fill his head and spots started appearing before his eyes. 

“Okay kid, listen carefully, bring your legs down slowly and slowly bring your head up.” Adrien did asked, bringing his legs to touch and slowly brought his feet down to touch the floor. Sitting on his shins, the blond brought his head up,wincing as the pulsing increased for a second.

“Feel that pounding in your head?”Plagg voice pierced the throbbing sensation and Adrien nodded, not opening his eyes to the pain, “You should never experience this while you’re dancing- if you do either you’ve been upside down too long or the adrenaline is overriding your brain. Don’t rush to right yourself or else you seriously hurt yourself, okay?” Adrien nodded again, “Good, don’t open your eyes or stand up until the pounding has begun gone for 15 seconds.” 

Adrien heard Plagg walk away and Adrien waited until the pounding ended, after what felt eternity, but was only 20 seconds, he counted to 15 and opened his eyes, the color of the room filling his pupils. He stood up and looked around to see Plagg once again on his computer. “You still want to do this kid? A pulsating head could be the least of your worries-you could pull or break anything- it could put you out of commission for a while, making your ballet career basically impossible,” Plagg peered over his shoulder with a deadly serious look on his eyes, “and we both know how much trouble you could get into.”

Adrien chewed on his lower lip but hardened as a he walked over and leaned on the wall so Plagg could see his face, “I know what I’m getting into. Since you know who I am, you know why I’m doing this.” 

Plagg merely turned to look the boy in the face. After a few moments, Adrien broke the silence, “So are you gonna teach me or not?” 

The dark haired man nodded as a clicked a button and a song started, a hip hip song called ‘2AM’ as he walked out to the floor followed by the blond danseur.

“Alright- basic formation first, basic steps footwork.” He looked toward the mirror as Adrien watched their reflections. Plagg talked while he performed the moves as he speaks.

“Drop down, and back up- swirl feet and right side step, left leg swoop up and down. Turn right; step back, body roll, turn-face front- step-hop left and right into two kick-steps. Lean back, body roll as you step back three steps- fourth turn forward, pat cross-chest and point toe back, roll hands down chest, then point and roll for left side, turning back. From there, walk two steps around, spin once, then bounce twice bringing arms down form again while stepping. Center body, then hand as fists, pressed together, pushed to the right and kicked to the left, retract back in. Hands infinity position up twice as legs cross then lock arm positions in four places coming down quickly. Two steps, pivoting form before leaning back slightly, right shoulder roll twice then lean weight on toes. Center body- sweep step back, arm out, grabbed by other arm like loading gun, cock it, step side and up before jumping up-clap hands- and land leaning your weight to left leg, sliding right leg down and out while swinging arms in and out. Skp step twice- get down on right knee with left leg bent and drag along the floor for two steps with running man arms. Hop up- criss-cross legs and spin, take this into a pivot walk, arms bent moving in and out while leaning on left and right leg. From that, slide right then stand up then body rolls as step back twice. Slow circle of body, skip step tow more times then drop into crouch with arms folded onto each other making small circles left and you walk back three and circling right moving up three steps. Got it?”

Adrien who had been following along intensely nodded, “We doing this to music now?”

“Yes- a lot, hope you like Adrian Marcel cuz you’re gonna hear him in your sleep.”

\---

This was the schedule for the next two weeks; sunset was when Adrien and Marinette would meet their teachers in that run down apartment complex and dance for two hours at a time. Any free time the two could get they would sneak into empty academy practice rooms and practice with earbuds blaring hip-hop songs in their ears. Of course in their escapades of running around the academy looking for practice spaces, somehow they always ended up missing each other- often passing by in a flash or turning a corner seconds too late. It was like fate was having fun, watching the two skate by each other. Oh well, they would be meeting again soon enough…

\----  
Marinette was furiously sliding, dipping and popping to a instrumental of their newest project, before she flipped from a handstand onto her feet then rolled back to flip and dragged her upper body up slowly, shaking her head back and forth before she dropped down into a split that ended the dance. 

Tikki, who was monitoring her from the computer, applauded loudly and turned off the song, “Marinette that was perfect!” The dark haired girl flipped her hair from her face and stood up, smiling broadly as she walked over to her bag and pulled out her water bottle to take a sip. Tikki walked over and rubbed her shoulder, “That was definitely you’re best act yet!”

“Thanks Tikki, this has been a blast.” The girl said happily, before she took another swig and put the bottle away, “Hey Tikki, can I ask you a question?”

“Anything dear.” The red woman straightened her body as she pulled down the sleeves of her hoodie over her wrists.

“You mentioned when you gave me your card that you were looking for a partner, does that mean you had a partner before?”

Tikki seemed to freeze, as if she wasn’t expecting the question, “Uh, yes, yes I used to have a partner. I had a fall out with the company we we’re a part of and, uh, I left.”

“Oh I’m sorry, did you not like them?” The blue haired girl looked concerned. Tikki took a spot on the floor and patted for the young girl to join her. After sitting down Tikki smiled as she began to talk.

“I got into the dancing when I was really young and joined a company when I was about your age. My focus at the time was ballroom dancing; I was young and I wanted to be successful, and I was ready to dance my life away. Since I was young, none of the older members wanted to pair with me so I was partnered with another new member of the company. His name was- everyone called him Plagg.”

Marinette furrowed her brow, “Plagg? Like Plague?” 

“Yes, apparently he was a plague of the group's existence; from what I overheard he was careless, lazy and always reeked of cheese, so naturally I was terrified to meet him. Then we were introduced by our manager and he was nothing like I expected. He was aloof, didn't take things too seriously very often but he was dedicated and encouraging in his own way. Our chemistry was remarkable and we nailed very performance we had. He kept me from freaking out over the stress and I pushed him to work harder. We worked together for nearly five years, it was the best time of my life. We were like Yin and Yang.” Tikki had started softly smiling at this point, as memories past before her eyes. Then the smile slid away, “Then, we had to do a performance that involved me wearing a… Costume that exposed a lot of my body. I have always been… Self-conscious about my looks and being in that costume was the most uncomfortable thing I had done in my life. Plagg convinced me that I should try to talk to the manger to see if I could get a costume change, since I should only dance if I was comfortable. I went to do that the next day and things got, complicated. I ended up walking out and left the company, and my partner, behind.” At this point moisture was prickling the sides of her eyes, “I later heard that they did horribly at the performance and I became hated at the company. Plagg tried to re-connect me but after all I ruined, I didn't have the heart to speak to him….I never even properly said good-bye.”

Marinette at this point was in quiet tears. She reached over and pulled Tikki into a hug. The woman merely rubbed the girl's back as she tried to comfort her with tears flowing freely now.

“There, there Marinette, I'm okay. It was just the way fate played out. Please don't cry, I don't want you to wear yourself out.”

The pink dressed girl pulled back, sniffing and wiping away her own tears. “I'm sorry Tikki, that just sounds so horrible. You must have loved him.”

“Well... well love is a strong and scary word Marinette. Whatever I was with Plagg- neither of us said anything about what we were because we both just… knew.” Tikki smiled, “And I would never trade those moments for anything. Doing what you love is worth the troubles that come with it. Always pursue your passion Marinette, even if it means being alone.”

Marinette’s eyes sparkled as she nodded, taking the words to heart. The two women hugged a final time before there was a blaring tone coming from Tikki’s bag. 

Confused, Tikki walked over to her bag and pulled out her laptop and after flicking through her email, suddenly lit up. “Marinette come look at this!”

The young designer looked over Tikki’s shoulder to see a neon painted blog page with photos and videos scattered about, “Huh? A blog?”

“A blog on a break dance joint, it looks underground- not fully known by the public- and seems like a lot of fun! You should go and show off your skills!”

“Tikki I can’t do that! I’ll freeze up! I’ll mess up! I can’t do that as me!” The blue haired girl ran her hands through her loose hair.

“Maybe you just need something to give you more confidence, like a mask! Or even better a masquerade!” Tikki started smiling wilder as she closed the laptop, “I have some things you can wear! I’ll bring them tomorrow! Trust me Marinette, I’ll make you a star.” 

Marinette started to protest, but the smile that lit up Tikki’s face made it impossible to say no. So she packed up and left the building, out the fire escape and flipped onto the concrete, sure her life was about to change.  
\------  
After getting the flow of the dance down perfect, Plagg has decided to show Adrien power moves, bold moves that focused on upper body strength, something he seemed to pick up with ease. While demonstrating a flip, a black rectangular wallet fell onto the ground as Plagg rolled through the air and splayed on the ground with the contents visible. Adrien picked up the wallet and in the front, a photograph caught his eye. It was of a red haired woman and him, sitting on the ground of what appeared to be a dance room floor. The woman was resting her head on his shoulder, pointing at something out of frame; while instead of looking at the pointed object, Plagg was looking at her, quite lovingly. 

Adrien was curious about the photo and as he handed Plagg he asked, “Who’s the girl?”

Plagg raised a brow, then looked down at his hand that held the wallet and understood, “She was my old partner at the company I traveled with.” 

“It seems like you two were close.” Adrien nodded as a knowing look filled his eyes.

Plagg merely sighed and smiled warmly looking down at the photo, “Yeah, we were the best when we were together. We could do anything they wanted us too, no matter how difficult or in how short of a time… and she had this face that was really hard to say no to.” When the teacher looked back up, Adrien had leaned forward on his heels, with a face that was poised to hear more, so he obliged. 

“She called herself Tikki. I was about your age when I met her, I had been with the company a few months so they paired us up because we were newbies. She was the Yang to my Yin- she was bright, determined and loving. She was… perfection.”

“Seems like you really liked her.” The blonde egged him on as Plagg merely laughed.

“Oh I didn’t just like her. I loved her.” He said the words so smoothly Adrien looked surprised as he continued, “I loved her because of who she was and what we were when we were together. She kept pushing to be the best and she had the best laugh. She, she was everything to me,” The smile faded, “And I would have done anything to make sure she was happy... even lose her.”

“See, a few days before she left, we were prepping for a big performance in front of very influential people. The costume she was chosen to wear was… exposing. Tikki always has always been body conscious so naturally the dress made her uncomfortable. I told her to go talk to the manager about a possible change so she could be comfortable dancing. That talk escalated into a fight and Tikki stormed out of the building and never came back.”

Adrien couldn’t believe it, “That was the last time you saw her?!”

“The planned performance bombed with Tikki gone and the company had a complete re-haul of organization and most of their dancers were fired. I must have called a hundred times and visited her apartment multiple times. Eventually, I figured I was a reminder of her failure at the company and she didn’t want to see me anymore. ” Plagg spilled the wallet into his back pocket, “That was five years ago.”

There was a pregnant silence filled the studio, Adrien fully feeling the weight of Plagg’s story. Plagg immediately moved over and grabbed his computer, bring it over so the blonde could see it. He flipped open the resting browser to a blog with a spray painted background of subway art and an empty stage background. 

“What’s this?” Adrien asked as he hovered over the mouse pad and scrolled down. Down the blog was previous posts of break dancers in various poses and stories of their lives.

“I’ve been doing some research on new places, and new clients, and I stumbled upon this place. It’s called End Over End- an underground joint that allows all walks of life to dance freely. Thought you’d be interested in going.”

Adrien looked up at Plagg in awe, “You think I’m ready for something like this?” 

“Honestly kid?” Adrien held his breath, waiting for the disappointment, “I thought you were ready a while ago, but I didn’t want it to go to your already massive ego.” 

“But wait, won’t someone recognize me? You know, face of a ballet company?” 

Plagg closed the laptop, “I’ve thought about that, you’d need some disguise. A charade if you will.” 

Adrien scratched his head, “Uh… I don’t have anything like that. Literally half of my clothes are ballet gear.”

Plagg nodded and rubbed his beard and sighed, “I might have something at my place you can use. I’ll bring it tomorrow; meet me back here and we’ll try some things out.”

Adrien took this as a cue to pack up and leave; right before he walks out the door Plagg’s voice calls him back.

“Oh, by the way, how do you feel about black cats?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2! Some more smattering of characters and look they dance here! (By the way, holy crap writing dance scenes is haaaarrrdddd). I tested out some different styles of writing so I'll be putting them into place in the future chapters. The two dance numbers in this song I found on YouTube and if you really want the full experience you should look them up because, they really add to the story.
> 
> Marinette and Tikki's choreography is Worth It (Fifth Harmony ft. Kid Ink) by May J Lee  
> Adrien and Plagg choreography is 2AM (Adrian Marcel) by Wildabeast Adams
> 
> I'll be including the titles and choreographers in each chapter notes for those who want to see them.  
> Until next time, Ciao!


	3. Drop That Kitty (Down Low)

The ballet student flew up the fire escape with impressive speed. He had to do an extra practice session with Chloe today after school which made him late for his meeting with Plagg, per their teachers request. It was odd when he thought about it, the academy wasn’t putting on a show for at least another two months and practice sessions didn’t usually occur until a month before a performance at least. Not having time to really think about the oddity, Adrien climbed into the window, ran down the hall and burst through the door. “SORRY I’M LATE!”

This offset obviously scared the teacher inside who was casually scrolling his phone, making the small device slip from his grip and he recovered it with panic, grumbling about knocking.

The blonde was about to rush into the room when he noticed the state of disarray on the hardwood floor. It was covered with black and green clothing- jackets, pants, shoes and accessories. It was like a emo kid’s dream come true. 

“You weren’t kidding about the black cats thing.” Adrien placed his bag down and walked toward the center of the room, avoiding bracelets and belts. 

“Hey I keep my word.” Plagg shrugged, watching as Adrien picked up a sleeveless, cropped hoodie lined with a lime green stripe. “So.. what catches your eye?”

Adrien’s green eyes wandered the floor until a shiny object and picked it up. It was a black choker, made of a faux leather and had a large, golden cat pet bell attached to it. Shaking it, there was no noise so the pendulum inside was removed, it was just a decoration piece. It was odd, but the blonde liked it. As he went on he picked out more pieces; the cropped hoodie, loose black pants, a plain black v-neck and lime green shoes. Assembling the wardrobe, with some words of ‘wisdom’ from Plagg, he came out with the lime green converse, loser black pants, black v neck and cropped hoodie lined in electric green, fingerless black gloves and the bell necklace. 

Adrien looked at himself in the wall-lined mirror, fairly pleased with what he selected. While he changed, Plagg swept all loose items out of sight, and looked over the outfit with pride. 

“Nice job kid, I really liked that hoodie.” He laughed as he grabbed the hood and flipped it over his head. When Adrien adjusted so he could see again, his eyes locked on to the small notches that covered the top of his hood that formed small cat ears. 

Scratching his chin, Plagg suddenly removed the ring from his hand and slid it on to Adrien’s exposed fingers on his left hand. Adrien was about to seriously protest when his mentor shushed him, “You’re a real Chat Noir now.”

The danseur merely smiled, his eyes gleaming, before he took in the situation, “Plagg this is ridiculous! People are going to recognize me and my father will have me locked in a practice room for the rest of my days!” 

Plagg merely rolled his green electric eyes and walked over his bag, “You’re lucky I thought of that…” He reached into the bag and pulled out a black container, unmarked and stained from use. 

“What is that? Face makeup?” The pupil questioned as Plagg dipped his fingers into the dark, oily substance. 

“Yeah, it’s a sweat-proof makeup of that was created by a friend of mine.” The dark-skinned man merely rubbed the black paint onto his face haphazardly, “This stuff is so strong no one will be able to recognize you.” 

Smudging the substance all over his eyelids made him flinch with the rough jabbing movements of Plagg’s fingers. When the process was done, Adrien swearing up and down he could do his own makeup from now on, a look in the mirror made him lose recognition of himself. The black paint was a temporary mask that clung to his face like a second skin and the darkness brought out the color or his eyes in a way he had never seen them before. The green was lit like electricity, similar to Plagg’s eyes, rather than the forest green he was used to people describing him. 

“See, all dolled up and ready for the ball Cinderella.” The dark sinned teacher smiled slyly as he slipped on his own kitty cat eared snap-back. “You ready for this?”  
Adrien merely looked himself over one last time before fixing the hood with it’s ears up and smirked, “Let’s do this.”

\----

Tikki flitted into the room, panting from her running entrance into the dance studio; her face, red as her hair, wind-blown hair rustled. Marinette, who was ringing her hands together with slight concern, brightened immediately, helping her with the extra bags she was carried.

“Got a little carried away huh?” The bluenette commented at the small hill of bags and boxes were laid out onto the floor.

“A bit, but you’re outfit must be perfect, so I brought lots of options!” The woman shrugged as she reached into one bag started pulling out pants and jackets. The shoe boxes were unboxed, shirts scattered about and gloves laid out. 

The designer looked at her options all over the floor and started to notice a trend. The primary colors present were red and black, and looking at Tikki she wasn’t really surprised. When Tikki said she had clothes for her to borrow, she had assumed she wasn’t giving her clothes from her personal closet. She tried to persuade her out of it, saying she could make something or buy some simple clothes on her salary, but Tikki was adamant. Eventually after much discussion and a quick brainstorming session, she selected her wardrobe of choice. She selected a red and black polkadotted sports bra and black, semi-loose black sweatpants with red rimming and red, red fingerless gloves and black colored converse. After changing into the outfit of choice, she and Tikki analyzed the outfit for any limitation of movement- Marinette doing black flips, front flips, splits and spins with ease. 

“Seems good!” Tikki approved as Marinette righted herself to stand, flipping her hair out of her face with a flick of her head. “Wait, wait, wait- we need to do something about your hair.”

“My hair? What about it?” Marinette ran her hands through her shoulder length locks. Her hair was a bit unruly but she didn’t think it was an inhibitor. Oh god if she had to cut her hair…

“Yeah, we need to tie it back some way. It gets in your face and blocks your vision and it could be a hazard if you perform more complex, controlled moves.” Tikki reached into a smaller bag and pulled out hair ties. She stepped behind the girl, looking and touching her hair before she started playing around with different hair styles. After much finicking, she settled on two low pigtails and tied with short red ribbons for flair. The red woman nodded in satisfaction before taking a jar of face paint, forcing Marinette to close her eyes. The teacher into the red liquid, bleeding onto her fingers and spread it across her forehead, eyes and temples. 

Tikki gave a once final look before closing the paint, “It's finished Marinette. Open your eyes!” 

The bluenette did and she didn't recognize herself. The girl she was before seemed to be replaced with a fierce looking woman with a red mask. It was the perfect disguise and the anonymity sent a thrill through her she wasn’t expecting. 

“I.. I look like a Ladybug.” Marinette said jokingly as she flicked at her pigtails, imaging them to be spread ladybug wings. 

Tikki merely chuckled, “I guess I always liked spotted things… and red… and black…” The woman then reached for her earrings and removed them, and attached them to the girl’s pierced earlobes.

“TIKKI- I can’t not your earrings!” Marinette started to reach to remove them when Tikki grabbed and held her hands. 

“Please Marinette, consider it a present for completing the training and all that jazz.” Her pleading eyes were what kept the girl from saying no and eventually she thanked her for the gift. 

Marinette then twirled, looking at her clothes and new earrings at too many angles, as if looking for something out of place, but everything was perfect. “You were right Tikki, I look like star quality.”

“Ye of little faith.” Tikki merely waved the comment off as she gathered up the bags and boxes, putting them into a corner of the room. The alarm on her phone sounded and as she turned it off, grabbing Marinette’s hand. “Come along now, if we don’t leave now, we’ll be even more late for the door opening!” The two females left the room, the light turning off with a flick of a passing hand, plunging the room into darkness. 

\----

Adrien had never been so excited. The walk there was not long but enough to adrenaline to fill his veins with excitement. The walk there was a blur. Plagg spoke to the person behind the door briefly before Adrien was shoved inside along with his mentor.

The inside of the club was like drug trip. Neon blues and purple lights hung from the ceiling in theater quality spotlights and lit up the large elevated dance floor, covered in frosted glass tiles. People huddled around in groups and near the performing stage while music projected out from the large turntables controlled by a figure behind them. Adrien was so overwhelmed by his surroundings and it was phenomenal. 

“Well what do you think kid?” Plagg leaned into his ear to make sure he was heard over the noise. 

“It’s… perfect.” Adrien’s voice was so soft he wasn’t even sure he said anything, before smiling brightly. Plagg, watching his reaction, merely smiled quietly- proud and happy for him.

Suddenly up on the stage the tall, Asian dancer started laughing loudly, “Seriously, none of you want to go? All of you are so weak?” 

“Ah jeez, looks like we got a walking ego.” Plagg merely scoffed. Adrien mere looked at the laughing man and felt his jaw tighten as he shifted his hood up more and pushed himself through the crowd toward the stage. His mentor only smiled and headed for a set of iron stairs by the side of the room, not wanting to miss this duel- he needed to be in a better position.

\---

The man standing behind the turntables in the front of the club rolled his brown eyes for the millionth time, this guy clearly had no idea when we wasn’t welcome. This guy had been an annoyance for a bit, being generally loud and annoying, but nothing he could get thrown out for. Now this punk refused to get off the dueling stage- the dude really needed to chill out. He reached for the radio walkie on his belt to signal for security when a dark figure rose from the crowd.

“You wanna challenger? Well here I am!” 

The person was dressed primarily black and green… with cat ears? Alright he could roll with it. He grabbed the oddly shaped microphone near his station and projected his voice over the large room. “Alright dudes and dudettes looks like we got ourselves a challenger! What’s your name stranger?” 

“You can call me…” The figure seemed to think about the question before a second before a smile crossed his face, “Chat Noir.”

“Hah!” The guy merely brushed him off, “Good luck against Blazing Lightning, my thighs are bigger than your body! I could out do you easily.”

“We’ll just see about that.” Chat merely kept his composure, merely unzipping his hoodie to expose the prime golden bell.

“Alright! You all know the rules one minute to show off your best moves, winner will be declared by the masses, we good?” When he got confirming nods from both participants, he started tapping away on devices to prep the music.

“You’re going down pussy cat.” The guy sneered in intimidation. 

Chat Noir merely smirked before sweeping back into a mocking bow, “By all means-Ladies first.”

“ALRIGHT ALRIGHT ALRIGHT! IT’S TIME TO GET DOWN FOR REAL!” The DJ declared before a the drum introduction of the song started and the music filled the room. Immediately the atmosphere changes as the lights directed onto the pair. 

‘Blazing Lightning’ immediately started dancing once the song began, throwing off his rhythm. Chat only watched his opponent go, analyzing their every strength and weakness. For all his talk, he did have good body control and every move seemed calculated, almost robotic. This guy was big, but unfortunately his large size made it difficult to maneuver in tricks. Overall he was decent. Once the minute ended, Lightning got vertical, panting for exertion and stepped to the side as the music restarted. 

Chat Noir got to the center stage as the song wound up to the drop before flipping into a series of power moves. Chat loved the adrenaline rush through his arms and legs, he could faintly hear the roar of the crowd as he twisted about on his hands with added momentum from his legs. Move after move later, body rolls and spins later, he had only a few seconds left due to the music cue. So he flipped over and landed on his feet, posing for a final time add the music played out. 

The crowd went beserk. His competitor looked flushed, clearly knowing he was at a disadvantage. Chat tried to glow with pride as the crowd hollered and shouted his name in praise.

“BODACIOUS! Alright guys, it’s time to vote! Make some noise if you vote for Blazing Lightning?” There was moderate applause, before the DJ smiled and continued, “Votes for Chat Noir?”

The sound was deafening. Nearly everyone in the room made noise on the floor and on the upper catwalk. It filled Chat with such warmth and the smile couldn’t be removed. Blazing Lightning looked annoyed at his loss and merely stormed off into the room passed the cheering fans.

“The winner is CHAT NOIR! CONGRATS DUDE!” The DJ congratulated him from his position and did not’ expect the dancer to vault up on the turntable stage to shake his hand. “That was amazing bro, I’m impressed!” Their fists bumped together as the DJ introduced himself, “Names Nino, they call me DJ Bubbler.”

“Pleasure.” Chat said sincerely, wiping his alarm across his face and for a second Nino thought he saw a glimpse of golden hair under Chat’s hood. “So what happens now?” 

“New to this huh?” Nino merely smirked as the dancer shrugged his shoulders. “You stand as champion now usurping Greased Lightning there, give someone else a chance to tussle with you.”

“Fair enough!” Chat flipped back onto the stage and the eagerly applauding crowd filled with energy, nothing could make this night better.

\---  
End Over End was down a shadowy alley. This was the kind of alley Marinette read about in fantasy novels when she was a child, where tunnels lead to magical world or alternate realities. The smell wasn’t the best- it reeked of sweat and smoke and something she couldn't recognize, like electricity in the air. The wall wasn’t marked with any sign or marker, you just had to know where it was. She was thankful Tikki seemed confident in their location and destination, or else Marinette would have turned back a while ago in pure paranoia. 

The alley widened after a few feet into a small plaza, with graffiti covering the walls with neon colors of green, yellow, pink and purple in ambiguous shapes and vary sizes from small bricks to entire sections of wall. It was awe-inspiring to see and Marinette could spend hours analyzing each piece of art. It wasn’t until she nearly ran into Tikki did she notice where they had walked to. It was a door of metal, like a door you would see on a war bunker from World War II, with rusted bolts smooth like pearls decorating the rims and peephole. The grey door was imitating, something akin to something in a prison than for a club. 

Tikki raised her delicate hand and knocked on the door. Immediately the slot slid open and a menacing pair of blue-gray eyes glaring them down. 

“Password.” The figure asked gruffly.

Tikki merely smiled and replied, “The WiFi is on.”

The eyes blinked once before the slot closed as quick as it opened. There a few seconds before the door opened wide, allowing the pair enter the door. 

The inside of the club was like drug trip. Neon blues and purple lights hung from the ceiling in theater quality spotlights and lit up the large elevated dance floor, covered in frosted glass tiles. People huddled around in groups and near the performing stage while music projected out from the large turntables controlled by a figure behind them. 

Marinette was going to look around more when a person stood in her way. She had ombre hair, with an orange hue to dark brown and darkened skin that made the whites of her eyes pop even behind her large glasses. She was just a few inches taller than her, dressed in loose black crop top, ripped dark jeans and purple converse. 

“HEY!” She yelled in greeting over the music, “Haven’t seen you here before!”

Marinette squeaked, thankful the music drowned it out, and Tikki was by her side, “Ah you must be Lady WiFi- we happened to come across your blog.”

“Ah, so cool!” The girl brightened even more if possible, “Welcome to End Over End! So are you both dancers?” 

“Mostly this lovely thing, she’s really something!” Tikki ushered her forward.

Mari panicked, “Tikki!”

“Relax dear,you’ll do fine! I’ll be up in the VIP sections, have fun!” Tikki smiled comfortingly before leaving toward the darkened sides of the room. 

Marinette didn’t want to admit it but her hands were twitching, her emotions flaring up. Her fight or flight response is kicking in and part of her didn’t want to be here. The room started to darken as her anxiety before a comforting arm from her friend new friend.

“So there's a new champion tonight, Chat Noir, he smoked the competition, it was insane!” Lady WiFi as she was called spoke as Marinette state tests calm down, “I don't think anyone can beat him, at least no one’s tried yet!” Marinette looked over at the performing floor to see a boy dressed mostly in black basking in the applause if the crowd. What she didn't expect was to suddenly be pushed toward the stage, “You should challenge him! It's rare we get more than one challenge a night and the fans would love it!” 

For a split second she considered resisting, saying no and flat out leaving but that would make all her hard work in vain. Something inside her hardened as she thought of herself dancing in front of a crowd. She was suddenly determined to dance, to heck against who. 

“I’d need a song to dance to.” She gathered her courageous and looked back at the beaming blogger. She leaned over to whisper into the bloggers ear, before the girl nodded and took off for the DJ stand for the request. 

Marinette took a deep breath and walked toward the crowd.

\---

The upper catwalk was thoroughly connected to the ceiling with multiple cross beams and thick wires,suspending it securely over the lower floor. It was wide enough for two people to walk side by side comfortably and lined the perimeter of the inside of the club, giving members on it a bird's eye view of the members below. This space was usually reserved for agents, teachers and other people that didn’t want to intermingle with the dancers below. 

Tikki merely walked over the iron staircase tucked in the corner, with a small woman standing guard. She had blonde dreadlocks, wrangled with a green bandana decorated with heavy metal band buttons. Despite the leather she was dressed in and her sweet looking demeanor, the woman had a feeling the woman was more dangerous than she let on. As she passed, the guard woman smiled, waved in a friendly manner as the lady in red went up the stairs and passed the packs of people on the iron pathway. She walked along the left walkway, before settling in the middle, leaning on the makeshift railing and admiring the vibrant throngs of people. She tilted down the brim of her hat and smiled knowingly as she watched Marinette entered the crowd. 

\----

“Do we have no one brave enough to challenge the champ, Chat Noir?” DJ Bubbler compelled the massive crowd that was not on edge, waiting to see if someone would step up. It was rare to get two challenges in one night, not many were super competitive dancers hung around the club. Still there was that energy and hope that someone would accept the challenge. “Nobody?”

Chat Noir merely stood in the center of the now glowing blue floor, arms crossed and a cheshire smile on his lips. “Can’t blame em,” He said allowed to the crowd as he stretched out his arms above his head, “I’d be scared to go agains-”

“I’ll give it a go.”

The voice was female and it made Chat pause mid-sentence. The group seemed to part like the red sea revealing a woman standing before she made her way up on the performing stage in a single leap. She was primarily dressed in red and black- red polka dot sports bra and black, loose pants. Her hair, dark as midnight, was separated into two pigtails by small red ribbons. Her head was dipped a bit, hiding her face mostly, but her presence was enough to have his full attention. 

“Ayyy! Girl what’s your name?” The DJ asked as he readied, suddenly looking down at his phone. The text was from a friend of his he knew was in the crowd, the tell-tale wifi signal and a song title. 

When the challenger finally looked up, Chat Noir felt his breath catch. Her eyes were a mesmerizing blue, and red was smeared across her face and forehead, masking her identity in an eerily similar way to his. 

“Call me Ladybug.” Her words seemed to be speaking to the DJ but the way her blue eyes lock onto him made him ingrained the name into his brain. _Ladybug…_

“Alright Ladybug let’s see what you got!” The DJ slipped his phone back into this pocket and started the requested song. The blogger was posed directly on the edge of the ring, phone out and recording all the action. Ladybug saw her out of the corner of her eye as she cheered, “DROP THAT KITTY, LADYBUG!”

The music flowed in and Marinette let it pierce her soul as she started to move,it was simple moves at first, swaying hips and quick steps. As she gained more courage with the roar of the crowd, she started into power moves, flipping over and landing in pose after pose. When landed on her elbows, cupping her face with her legs vertical in the air, she looked up to see her competitor still frozen in shock, his electric eyes locked onto her face. The voices of the room faded as their eyes met and a warm smile crossed their lips simultaneously, a silent connection formed between two strangers to give the gathered populus a show they wouldn’t forget. 

The next moments were a whirlwind. Ladybug shifted her weight down and shifted to run towards Chat Noir. Her movement prompted him to run towards her,a devious glint in his cat like eyes. The crowd held their breath as the pair jumped at the last second, barely avoiding each other and propelled each forward, landing on hands and going into their own tricks. Both dancer’s played of each other’s moves, going bigger and better with each pass- reveling in the energy shared between the two of them. 

By the time the song had been wrapping up, the duo were on opposite sides of the stage and a shared nod had them back flipping towards each other in synchrony to landing on their knees, sliding to face each other, their faces inches from contact with panting breaths. 

The song ended and the crowd went nuts, applause, whistles and names of both dancers cheered simultaneously. Lady Wifi was trembling with excitement as she was sure she just witnessed one of the best routines in the world. Ladybug and Cat Noir both took a second to recover their composure and smiles erupted on both their faces. Chat Noir was the first off the floor and extended a hand to help the red girl up. She accepted it, getting on her feet as the crowd was still cheering as she looked around to individual faces with smiles and congrats. A warm feeling filled her chest and she remembered why she loved to dance- she could feel the love from the crowd and it was worth all the weeks of training. 

\---

Plagg merely scoffed, “Well I’ll be damned.” The girl was good, he was impressed. 

The dark skinned man had slipped up the catwalk when Adrien had gotten up close and personally with all-muscles-no-brains. He leaned up, cracking his neck back into position, sore from straining over the railing. As he rubbed the muscle back to life, his eyes gazed across the room and he froze.

If his mind was playing tricks on his again…. No...

On the parallel catwalk was someone he hadn’t seen in a long time, but he’d know her anywhere.

Her small body, her red hair and those beautiful sapphire eyes, gazed down at something in the crowd. He dared not look away, for if he remove his gaze for a second she could vanish again.

Out of instinct, the dark skinned man turned left and started maneuvering his way past throngs of people that had moved up as the dances commenced. His movements became more urgent as he worked the perimeter of the walls, his eyes locked onto her. WIth every step closer his head spun with the sound of her voice and laughter.

_“Ha ha- get up silly.”_

_“Be careful with the jump, don’t hurt your ankle!”_

_“We did it! Holy crap we did it!”_

_“I’m so happy we met, partner.”_

As he rounded the second corner post the was close to flat out running to her, he could see her side profile from his position, her small nose and full lips… turned into a frown.

His footsteps slowed when his mind flashed back to that day…

_“I can’t do this anymore, I can’t. Please just leave me alone!”_

He stopped a mere foot away from her… before turning around the fleeing back behind corner post. 

As he hid behind the iron beam, Plagg struggled to prevent him from panicking. Deep breaths in and out lead to him closing his eyes to regain his composure. 

_Plagg.. You are such a coward…_

He briefly peeked around the corner at where the woman still stood, now motioning hurriedly at whatever she was watching.

“Yep… I’m a coward.” 

\---

“You’re amazing!” The voice in her ear caused her to turn abruptly to face Chat who hadn’t really moved away from her, his eyes filling her vision, they were electric green and settle into her memory.

“Thanks, you’re amazing as well!” She replied back, the smile never leaving her lips as she looked of the corner of her eye she found Tikki on the catwalk, gesturing to her watch in a hurried manner, obvious saying without saying it was time to go. “I… I gotta go!” Ladybug looked back at Chat before turning to head for the door. 

“Wait!” Chat grabbed her arm just as it was right before it was out of reach, an almost shy look appeared on his face, “Will I see you again?”

The girl blinked then sent the boy a reassuring smile, “I’ll be around.” With that he let her arm go and she ran to meet Tikki who was now waiting by the door. 

Chat Noir watched from the stage as the woman who danced with him, jumped off the stage and ran past cheering people and then out the door with a woman with odd red hair, that he had no idea where he had seen before. As the last thought to pass through his head he vocalized in a voice we was sure nobody could hear with the deafening noise. 

“See you around… My Lady.”

\---

As the club quieted down, in the corner of the catwalk, a figure watched intensely with haunted, dark purple eyes. They were thin, delicate looking to the point where they looked like a porcelain doll, with alabaster skin. They was dressed in a light purple assemble of a dress shirt, vest and slacks with shoes to match. 

_The Master will want to hear about this..._

They silently reached into they're pocket and pulled out a cellphone, and pressed a button to call. When they got the voice on the other end they finally spoke, "Sir, I have found something you will definitely be interested in."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys the long awaited Chapter 3! I have been through heck with school for the last couple of weeks so I used my scarce downtime to white this (once again un-betaed so if there are errors I'm sorry). 
> 
> The songs used in this chapter are GDFR by Flo Rida(no set choreography here) and Drop that Kitty by Tinashe and Charli XCX with choregraphy inspiration from Nika Kljun. 
> 
> Also I was reading reviews and I love the comments! They fill me with such energy and they really help me push out the chapters more frequently when I can.  
> Anyway, thank you all for reading! Ta-ta!


	4. Strangers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!   
> I had to take a break from writing due to finals and personal things happening in my life. I've felt horrible about leaving for two months so I present this update as my apology. There's a new introduction and plenty of fluff, I hope you enjoy!   
> Kudos and comments appreciated!  
> -Vixen

Ever since Marinette fled the dance club, her life seemed to move in overdrive. Work days turned to weeks with nights passing in a blur of lights and sound. She- Ladybug- had gone back to End Over End a few times since her debut, her arrival (along with the cat dancer) made the club goers had slowly morphed into fans- headed by the Lady Wifi, who’s videos of her performance made her a small internet celebrity. She had started panicking when Tikki discovered the videos on the blog, concerned someone would recognize her in public but days went by and nothing happened. The disguise was definitely working that was for sure, and she truly she was grateful. Marinette never expected to enjoy the night rendezvous so much, it was like she had an alternate persona- an image to unleash her talent and passion without consequences- it was riveting.

It made moments like this bearable. 

Marinette had to run and get coffee for one of the dancers at the academy- apparently her friend forgot and the girl blew her top, and wouldn’t calm down until she got her drink. So after being dragged away from her growing pile of developing costumes to run for it. She supposed it was because she was the youngest and (relative) fastest but oh if she didn’t feel low. 

After conveying the complicated order to the barista, she waited for the order to call up by the pick up station. This coffee shop was relatively crowded for it being early morning but the atmosphere was friendly and it made her want to sit and relax for a bit.

_Hah, if only I had the time._ She thought wistfully, stretching out her arm to stretch her fingers

It was at that moment she felt a hot sensation on her hand, and she heard a man hiss in pain. She immediately regained her surroundings, looking up a bob of red-orange hair and cyan eyes. 

“AH! AH I AM SO SORRY!” She yelled in panic, fully realizing she had caused coffee to be spilled on the man’s arm. 

“It’s fine, it’s fi- Marinette?” 

She was surprised to hear her name from the stranger until she actually looked at his face, “Nathanael?” 

“H-Hey!” A small smile crossed his lips, “From Collège Françoise Dupont?”

“Y-yeah!” The image of a younger version of the man flooding her memory, “We had so many classes together.” By the looks of it, he hadn’t changed that much. His hair was still that tomato shade that often caught people’s attention more than his personality did. He was taller than her by a few inches and dressed in dark jeans, a gray t-shirt under a black blazer.His left hand held a half emptied paper cup with brown liquid staining the edge of the blazer’s sleeve and dotting on his skin, “It’s good to see you again! Oh- OH, I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Nah, it’s nothing.” He started to wipe the coffee but was stopped by Marinette grabbing his wrist in protest. 

She grabbed a napkin from her pocket and dabbed at the sleeve, “One tablespoon of dish soap, one tablespoon of white vinegar and two cups of warm water- apply a bit a time and dry with a cloth.” When she finished her spiel she looked up to see a recognizing look in his eyes.

“Coffee removal.” He nodded, “Well noted Mari, I see you worship the caffeine gods as well.” 

She nodded, smiling softly, “More than I’m proud to admit but when you burn the midnight oil, you do what you must.” Disposing the napkin in the trash near her, “But seriously, I feel bad about bumping into you, let me buy you another coffee?”

“And feed my addiction? I feel so flattered.” He could only brush his hair from his face as Marinette merely chuckled at his false words, “Well.. we could go out for lunch sometime? I mean, only if you want to! I don’t want you guilt trip you into an outing it’s just,” Heat signaled a light pink blush spread across his cheeks, “I’d like to see you again.”

Marinette couldn’t help but feel touched at Nathanael’s honesty, which lead to her taking out her phone and asking for his number for a later time. As soon as she finished and slipped her phone away, her order was called and she had to run again, waving her old friend off with a smile.

\---

Being one of her only friends, Adrien had known Chloe since they were young kids. When they were both younger they were spry, full of energy and mischief, getting into as much trouble two young kids could in a hotel. He didn’t know when that sweet young kid started to turn... spoiled to put his wording nicely. 

Chloe was clinging to his arm, whining loudly how she ‘oh so desperately needed’ caffeine and yelling about how Sabrina was so cruel to not get her drink this morning. Adrien could every muscle in his body tighten with every growl that left Chloe’s lip gloss smeared mouth. 

To be fair, Sabrina looked like she had been through hell. She clearly hadn’t slept in sometime as noticed by the bags under her eyes, visible even with her large glasses, and every second she fought to stand up straight. She only clasped her hands behind her back, “I-I’m sorry Chloe,” she apologized for what seemed to be the eightieth time, “I was going to be late and-”

“THAT’S NOT AN EXCUSE!” The blonde screamed with a mixture of anger and sadness that only portrayed her as a overblown soap opera character. Slamming her head into his shoulder, she started sobbing tearless, making a scene and Adrien felt more uncomfortable than ever. It was then he was so valiantly saved by a blurred figure at the door. 

The girl appeared to be keened over slightly from her presumed running and the coffee cup in her hand. He recognized her automatically as the girl he encountered a month and a half ago, her blue eyes were framed by long lashes as they fluttered as she caught her breath. 

“Well it’s about time!” He was surprised she left his side, strutting up to the exhausted girl and swiping up the drink. The girl looked a bit taken aback by the sudden motion as the blonde ballerina opened the lid and examined the contents with sturdy eyes. “You got the order correct, right?”

“Uh, yes?” The runner looked annoyed at the comment, “I wouldn’t have bought it if it was wrong.”

Chloe’s blue eyes hardened at the girl’s tone, clearly she didn’t appreciate the sass, “Oh yeah, if you’re so confident- tell it to me. I don’t want to have an allergic reaction because YOU messed up.”

“This ‘you’ has a name, it’s Marinette,” Marinette sighed, clearly done with all this, standing up straight- she was just about Chloe’s height- she began to rattle of the order. “And that is a Venti, Skim, Extra Shot, Extra-Hot, Extra-Whip, Extra Maintenance, Sugar-Free Caramel Macchiato,” she finished and pointed to the drink in question, “Oh and there’s coffee in there too.” Her quip had actually gotten a good laugh from the students in the studio, even he had to stifle a giggle from his mouth. “Now if you are satisfied, I have to get back to work.” She crossed her arm across her chest, her eyes focused on the side of the door frame as to avoid looking at the pretentious blonde. That was her error though, if she would have looked at Chloe she would have seen the hot, seething glare turn cold and calculated. 

“You’re excused then,” she stated coolly. With a sharp and deliberate turn, the drink tipped forward ever so and even under all the sugar and foam- a stream of burning hot liquid came out and splashed across Marinette’s right wrist and hand. 

Marinette’s eyes widened as she let out a small cry and cradled the injury to her chest. 

“Oops… clumsy me.” Chloe walked back to Sabrina, who was struggling to remain standing, and waved behind her manicured hand contemptuously, “You’re dismissed Mari-netty.”

The girl at the door looked up with anger flashing before her blue irises turning dark like a thunder clouds in a violent storm. She turned on her heel and stormed off. 

Adrien watched Marinette go and felt his heart tug to go after her and make sure she was alright. Chloe's temper was terrible to experience fury hand and he wouldn't wish it upon his worst enemy. So after yelling to his professor that he was going to the restroom, he dashed out into the hall just in time to see Marinette turns the corner of the hall.

\--  
 _Stupid Chloé Bourgeois, I need that hand for needle work._ Marinette hissed as she tested her hand, bending her fingers with tense muscles, _Well, maybe I can just run some cold water over it in the bathroom-_

“HEY! Marinette!” 

SHe paused in mid stride, looking over her shoulder to see a familiar blond boy booking it down the hallway. She knew who it was right away and her knees nearly gave out on her. 

It’s that boy! From the room a month ago… why does he look so concerned?

“Yes?” 

He slowed his pace so he didn’t run straight into her and immediately took her hand closer to inspect it. His touch made her breath catch in her throat as he delicately looked over the reddened skin with worry. “I saw what Chloé did… I wanted to apologize and make sure you were not hurt.”

Her chest tightened with his words, he was concerned about her? She was naturally pretty clumsy, so this injury wasn’t the worst thing to happen to her. However the look in his green eyes looked troubled, as if she was just received third degree burns. 

“Really, I think I’m okay.” She tried to wave off his concern and ignore the rush of blood to her cheeks, “I’m sure it’ll be fine by the end of the day.” 

Her words did nothing to dissuade his attitude as he still kept a hold of her hand. His thumb was rubbing small circles just below her knuckles and it was such a nice sensation. With her cramping hands rejoicing silently in their tendons; she had to suppress a soft sound that threatened to escape her throat. 

“I’m sorry.” He said sadly, finally releasing her hand and looking upset he couldn’t do anything else to help her. 

“It’ okay, thank you for checking on me-” She trailed off when she realized she had no idea what this boy’s name was.

“Uh, Adrien.” The danseur replied as his hand clasped behind his back, his eyes refusing to meet hers for some reason, “Just call me Adrien.”

“Okay,” She smiled, “Thank you Adrien.” There was that smile returned to his face and it make her bubbly inside to see him happy again. She turned and headed for the nearest staircase, headed back for the office, “I have to get back to work now, bye Adrien!” 

He watched her go with the smile still there and he absentmindedly reached for his phone, sending a quick text by the time he got back to his calmed down class.

\---

By the time Marinette washed her hand off and got back to her desk, she was suddenly ambushed by her boss with a myriad of questions.

“You got Mademoiselle Bourgeois her drink?”

“Yes Ms. Sancouer.”

“Thank you. Did she calm down?”

“Yes, she seemed to.”

“Good-” It looked like she wanted to tack another word to that sentence when she suddenly removed her phone and looked at it. Hey eyes scanned the surface before a second of shock passed over her features before being expertly hidden. 

She looked up and met Marinette’s confused expression, “Marinette how are your hands today? I know you've have a lot of work lately and that isn't good for your fingers.”

The dark haired girl blinked in surprise before answering honestly, “Uh they're a little… cramped?”

“I'll fetch some ice so we can rest your hands.” Nathalie left her phone at the edge of Marinette’s desk before briskly walking out to get the said ice. 

Marinette couldn't help but look at the open message (on her boss’ phone no doubt). The message author was labeled Adrien A- with the rest cut off. That didn't surprise her as much as the messages contexts did. 

**Nathalie**

**Marinette should be back by her desk soon. I want you to check on her if you have time. Chloe lost her temper and spilled her coffee on her hands. Also I noticed her fingers appear cramped, probably from her work load. Make sure she's okay for me.**

**Thanks**

He really was concerned about her hands wasn't he? 

\---

The rest of her day was much better than the start- she knocked her pile of work down several pegs and even managed to give herself a break to ice her hands. It was while she was writing down criteria for a future costume idea when her thought process was broken by the sound of thunder claps. A glance outside confirmed her sinking suspicions; Paris had been filled with so many sunny days lately that Marinette was surprised to see thunder clouds brewing outside. 

Of course she left her umbrella home today. 

She tried not to think about the unfortunate commute home in a few hours, maybe by then the rain would have stopped. 

Ms. Sancoer poked her head out from her office, multiple phones around her, “Marinette, since I have to get to a meeting across the city I’m closing early. You can go home now.”

...Has she ever mentioned how absolutely fantastic her luck was!?

Biting her cheek to keep from arguing back, she gathered her bags and walked to the front doors, standing in the archway and staring at the miserable surroundings. People were using newspapers, jackets and anything else to keep themselves dry as they ran about. Marinette stuck out her palm to feel cold water fall on her skin and make her bones chilled. She sighed and rested her bag in front of her, eyes looking down at the soaking street.   
“Hey!” A voice from behind made her jump as Adrien came up to stand beside her, “How are you doing?”

“Adrien!” SHe recovered and tightened her grip on her bag, mentally berating herself for being so skittish, “Much better, thank you.” 

“Wow it’s raining cats and dogs out here.” He had large black umbrella in his hand, which he stepped forward and popped open with a satisfying whoosh. When he looked over his shoulder, he noticed Marinette had not moved an inch as well as her lack of proper rain cover, “You didn’t bring an umbrella?”

“Unfortunately not.” She admitted shyly, rubbing the back of her neck, “I’m not looking forward to the trip home.”

Without missing a beat, the blond immediately moved the black handle toward her, “Here.”

“W-What!?” She immediately started to wave away the object, “I can’t do that! If I did then you’ll get wet!”

His lips bunched to the side as a horn came from the street where she saw a limo waiting. “You definitely have a longer walk than me,” he joked as a small laugh left his throat, “besides, I’m a drip-dry model anyway.” 

He extended the umbrella forward once more, with a softer, intimate smile on his lips and locked his eyes to her face. She looked down at the the handle, and his hand that gripped it loosely, genuinely touched by his kind gesture.

_He too nice for his own good, Marinette thought, too nice, too sweet, too-_

Her ocean blue eyes locked with shining emerald and her breath caught as thunder rolled near by, piercing her mind with a groundbreaking revelation.

_Too handsome..._

With careful movements, she reached out to take the umbrella, retracting her hand ever so when it brushed against his, before he passed it into her hand. She brought it to her level and looked back at the boy, slight awe still on her face from her realized feelings. She moved to improve her grip on the handle of the umbrella when it suddenly collapsed on her body. She struggled to pull the fabric off her face she could hear him...laugh, laugh like he had heard the best joke of his life. Marinette felt her face heat up in embarrassment but found herself laughing along with a giggle. 

Eventually he recovered and straightened, “Sorry,” he raked his fingers through his hair before turning and walking to the limo, “See you around!”  
Marinette felt her knees give out as she barely kept her composure, her mouth moving before her brain, “S-See you Ara- arain- Around!” By the time she realized she was stuttering the limo was driving away with it’s precious cargo.

_I stuttered? Stuttering me? I haven’t stuttered since high sch- oh no. Oh no- I only stutter w-when… when I’m… in..._

The young woman immediately shouldered her bag and started walking toward the nearest bus station; she needed to get home as soon as possible.

\----

The bus was packed with people and Marinette was lucky enough to find a seat before her legs gave out. She takes a few breaths to calm down and tried to shut off her mind for a while, feeling the motions of the bus gently rock her back and forth like some odd lullaby. 

She was in love. She was in love with Adrien. It was like a boulder dropped in her stomach.

Marinette had been in love once before, with some guy in middle school when she was 14. She was young and shy and her feelings never left her mouth and it passed like the wind before she knew it. Tightening a grip on her bag, she remembered how silly she was, her heart on her sleeve like it was a design. She hurt easily then, but now she was strong, she could handle herself and her freight train of emotions- at least she needed to now. 

Another stop came and went, people getting off and more on and a woman sat next to her swore as she sat down next to her. 

“Sorry about the mess.” Her jacket was covered in fresh water drops and flicked in her direction haphazardly. 

A simple “No problem” managed to leave Marinette’s lips before she went back to looking at her lap. 

“Is something wrong miss? You look like you’ve just received the worst news of your life.” 

The dark haired woman turned to her right to acknowledge the stranger's question, “I-It’s nothing! Nothing major that is,I may have just realized that I’m just in love that’s all…” Her mouth kept going and her voice getting higher in pitch before she slapped her hands over her mouth to silence herself. 

The woman removed her hood to reveal tied up ombre hair and caramel skin. Her amber eyes blinked for a second before she smiled warmly, “Well… congratulations! It’s not every day you fall in love.”   
Marinette had to admit she was comforted by her reaction, “Yeah, I guess you're right,” She smiled, “Now I just have to not make a fool of myself- that’s gonna be harder.”

“Well what’s the problem, if you don’t mind as stranger asking?” The woman paused before she extended her hand, “Actually not a stranger, a friend you haven’t met yet. I’m Alya.”

“I’m Marinette.” She returned her handshake and their hands felt good to shake, firm and sincere. 

“So, Marinette,” Alya continued as she pulled out her phone, “What’s the scoop?”

“Scoop? What are some kind of reporter?”

“I want to be someday,” she confessed before pointing an accusing finger at her, “and it sounds like you’re trying to avoid the question.”

The designer couldn’t help but giggle, “Guilty. When I’m in love I lose the ability to speak.”

“A serious concern I see.” Alya nodded in agreement as she typed something into her phone after glancing at it for a minute she red something off of the screen, “Keep conversations short, but meaningful. Practice what you want to say in your head. Basically don’t improvise.” 

“Easier said than done then…” Marinette left the words hanging when the phone suddenly pinged loudly. 

Turning in confusion, the ombre woman explained, “Sorry my blog has been a huge hit lately, ever since the arrival of Ladybug and Cat Noir?”

The mention of her alter ego made her tense up, “Ladybug and Cat Noir?”

“Yeah, have you heard of them? Their all the rage on the internet right now! Ever since they performed at End Over End, my blog has made them instant celebrities.” She gushed as she showed the phone to her new friend. Marinette recognized the blog and the pictures of her as Ladybug posing for a shot. She remembered posing for it for Lady Wifi but how did Alya get them? 

“Wow these are great, where’d you get them from?” She questioned innocently.

“I took them myself! Ladybug was so nice to pose for me a few weeks ago, she’s an inspiration.” Alya was kind of rambling at this point but Marinette had put two and two together.

“Your Lady Wifi?”

Alya’s face turned confident with the brightness still there, “Why yes I am, you must have read my blog at one point. Lady Wifi is my club persona, to keep my identity hidden- End Over End is infamous for the theme actually.” 

“Oh that sounds cool.” Marinette was itching to get up and leave before her cover was blown and thankful her stop was coming up soon.

“It is- the club is exciting, but it’s really come alive ever since LB and CN showed up. Ladybug is such a vibrant person and she just makes you wanna have fun and be yourself- even if you wear a mask. She’s made so many people happy-look!” She sudley shoved her phone toward the blue eyed girl and Marinette’s senses were flooded with commenters leaving touching and positive messages- it made her heart jump with happiness. Soon the phone pulled back and Alya smiled, “I’ve never seen so many happy people in one place. It’s incredible… I just want to thank her so much for all she’s done.”

Her heart melted at the woman’s words,they were so sincere it made her smile genuinely. The bus came to a stop and the doors opened to let people off. She stood up and grabbed the umbrella, took a step then turned back to Alya and said two words before leaving, “You’re welcome.” 

Marinette propped the umbrella and started down the street for home when a few seconds later she heard a familiar voice from behind her.

“WAIT!” She stopped, trying to keep her smile from stretching across her lips as Alya came running up to her quickly. 

She stopped next the umbrella, breathless and started to speak, “You- you said- are you- I mean you look like-” Marinette chose to only wink, something Ladybug did frequently and Alya let out a scream, “OH MY GOSH, IT IS YOU! Oh gosh I wasn’t ready for this. It’s so nice to meet you! Can I have an interview for the blog!?”

Marinette only laughed, taking the girl under her umbrella cover and spoke in a civil tone, “It’s kind of a secret. Nobody is supposed to know who Ladybug is.” 

“Then why did you tip me off?”

“Because… your words were genuine and I hate fake people. I felt like i could trust you.” Her gaze directed in Alya’s eyes to convey her words.

“And you can!” Alya agreed, “I won’t tell a soul Lady-Marinette, I swear.” After a nod of approval the two started to walk down the street, “So… can LADYBUG give me an interview?”

“Sorry, no interviews.”

“You say that now; one day I will convince you.”

\----

After the bout of rain passed, Adrien sneaked out of the house for a quick walk. As he walked by a large poster for the academy’s previous Christmas show (the nutcracker of course), he paused and stopped to look at the poster up close. There was the promotional image for the show, some of the dancers, himself highlighted by the spotlight and the major names involved in production. In large, curvy, cursive letters that is supposed to be Gabriel Agreste’s signature along the   
bottom. 

The remainder of his only parent made him want to frown, though mouth never moved from it’s resting position. His father was elsewhere as per usual; the Agreste was known for bouncing from foreign country to foreign country. The last time he knew where his father was located he was about a month ago (he was in Tokyo). Eventually it got so confusing he stopped asking, figuring that he father would speak to him when he was needed. 

Turning on a heel and walking away, he kept his head low. He should move along; there was always a chance he could be spotted by paparazzi. The dark clouds had thinned but not entirely faded from the sky, exposing patches of darkening sky. It was nice to get out sometimes, excluding his late night escapades,and walk about Paris. 

Adrien absently wondered if the sky would clear tonight when suddenly loud barking came up from behind him and ran over his legs. He ended up on the ground, mostly dry, with a small dog in his face. It was a small Jack Russell terrier , white with brown patches and pink, wet tongue panting happily. 

“Get a load of that dog.” He chuckled, gently reaching out and letting the dog sniff and lick his hand. It was a playful pup with something like a smile and a green leash puddled behind their wagging tail. “You ran away from your owner, buddy?”

“RASCAL!” A voice ran up to him, a blue blur that ended up grabbing the leash and grasping it tightly, “Thanks dude, I’m so sorry about my G-ma’s dog. He’s a bit of a wild card…. Have i seen you somewhere before? You have this really familiar face.”

Adrien looked up to see a dark skinned man wearing a hooded leather jacket, jeans and large headphones decorated red and blue patterns that reminded him of the dj from End Over End he had befriended a few months ago. 

“Probably not, I guess I just have that kind of face. I’m glad the sidewalk didn't mess it up.” He got up and brushed himself off, “Nice headphones by the way.”

He looked really pleased with the compliment, he reached up to adjust the piece like it was his pride and joy. “Thanks bro. I’m a DJ so gotta look the part.” 

The detail made Adrien perk up, so this guys is a DJ as well, an odd coincidence, “Ah, what’s your name? Maybe I’ve heard of you?” 

“DJ Bubbler. It’s a weird name I know, but my cousin helped me pick it out when we were kids. It just kinda stuck.” Rascal was sniffing around their feet.

“Nah I think it sounds awesome.” Adrien agreed honestly. He did enjoy hanging out with the Bubbler at End Over End,they had formed a friendship he wouldn’t have traded for anything, it was like they were friends for years. Rascal had started to tug on the leash towards the wall next to them. 

“Thanks man, I’m small now but one day I’m gonna be playing for the world.” His eyes were electric and genuinely shining. Suddenly Rascal yanked extra hard, sending Adrien and Nino tumbling to the side and into the brick wall.

Adrien recovered first and untangled the leash from their entwined legs, helping Nino stand in front of the poster covered wall. 

“Ugh, Rascal what the heck…” Nino blinked back to reality when he noticed the poster… and looked at Adrien. Then at the poster… then Adrien.

Adrien prepared himself and tried not to hold his breath.

“So… you’re Adrien Agreste?” Nino asked casually, pointing to the poster behind him for reference. 

“...Yeah,” Adrien shrugged, “It’s no big deal, you probably know me better as Chat Noir.”

_What… Adrien WHAT, WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?_

_....Because I’m sick of being just Adrien Agreste._

Nino blinked a few times before laughing, loudly, “I thought I recognized your face from somewhere! I see why you went underground now.” He motioned to the wall, “A change of scene is definitely what you need dude.”

The blonde nodded in agreement, a smirk growing on his lips, “Is it that obvious?” 

“I’ve seen store mannequins with more life in their eyes bro, no offense.”

“None taken.”

The dog was pulling on the leash again and Nino finally took notice, “I should get him back. I’ll be seeing you around then Adrien.”

“Uh yeah and Nino?” he stopped the by from walking away, “Keep Chat Noir’s identity a secret okay? If I got found out-”

“I gotcha dude- promise me you’ll come to End Over End on Saturday though, there’s gonna be a serious announcement and I think you and Ladybug might find it interesting.” He gave a two fingered salute and let the dog drag him off down the street. The rain had left massive puddles in the cracks of the street, forcing him to leap and bound over small lakes of water, while waving and saying goodbye. 

Adrien couldn’t help but smile and wave back.

It was good when strangers became friends.


	5. Sidekick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm sorry these updates are such a large distance apart, I hope this nice, long, plot filled chapter as a thanks for waiting. Enjoy! (Also I am posting this un-betaed, so if there are glaring errors I apologize in advance)

“There’s going to be a competition?” Tikki questioned Marinette as she stirred some cream into her coffee cup.

“Yeah, Alya talked to me about it the other day.” The dark color of the liquid lightened ever so with the addition, “They’ll be announcing it publicly Saturday night and all the details will be posted on the blog.”

After meeting Alya, gaining a friend another friend at End Over End, she had let slip about the competition in a fit of excitement. A night of dancers versus dancers, bragging rights and a grand prize! She didn’t say what the prize was, but she had a strong suspicion that it was some large amount of cash. Alya was already predicting her as a shoo-in for the winner- while Marinette was still unsure. So, after exchanging cell phone numbers and parting ways, Marinette called her teacher for her opinion- this led to an impromptu meet up at the Lucky Bug.

“Well this is tricky.” Tikki declared as she dabbed a napkin on her lips, “I see no reason why you couldn’t try. My only concern is you identity staying secret. I’m sure we can twist the rules to our advantage ” 

Placing her spoon down, bluebell eyes looked up slightly surprised, “You think I’m ready to… compete?” 

“Oh Marinette." Red hair was tucked behind ears filled with small black studs, “You’re different from any other person I worked with before.”  
Rubbing the mug surface with her fingers the dark haired girl sighed, “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“You are different- by that I mean you’re surprising, unpredictable and endearing with your actions. You are very talented, you learn fast and the competitive spirit practically radiates off you.” Tikki’s red lips curled into a warm smile, “You were born for this.”

Marinette only held up the cup to her lips, taking a deep sip while trying to hide her smile.

\-------  
“I’m going tomorrow.” Adrien spoke clearly into the phone that was pressed to his ear concealed by the hood of his jacket. He’s on the subway, heading towards the academy (Gorilla called in sick, bless him) but there’s a man with a newspaper nearby who he knows is listening. He has to be discreet or else who who know what that man might tell his father.

“Jeez kid, this is the fourth time this week,” Plagg sounds cranky on the other side, he must have woken him up from one of his many catnaps, “What makes you so sure she’ll be there?”

“Got a tip from a friend- said it would be very interesting.” 

“Yeah, well let’s hope your ‘friend’ is right,” The man grumbled, “You’ve come close to slipping up the past few times, gotta be careful or else it all ends.” 

“Yeah, I know, I’ll be home on time.” 

“Heh, better be kid. I’ll meet you at the usual.” The line clicked off, clearly he had nothing else to say. 

Adrien slid his phone away, noticing in his peripheral vision the man with the newspaper casually turns a thin page with ease. He has been sloppy the last couple of times, leaving too late and having to sneak into his own house. He didn’t think at the time that any cameras had caught him- clearly the spy proved otherwise. He would have to watch himself.

Adrien Agreste was not allowed to slip up. 

\---

The air was electric in End Over End. Nino could feel the excitement of the crowd as they piled into the underground club. He had been told when he came in for work, by a man dressed in a lilac suit informing him that towards the middle of the night he would be making the announcement. He’s seen the man around quite a bit lately, fluttering around backrooms and on the catwalk. 

Going into one of the backrooms, the DJ removed his hat and headphones, slipping them on a chair before pulling his hurt over his head. 

**“NINO LAHIFFE YOU AREN'T GOING TO BELIEVE WHAT I DID!”**

The man nearly jumped out of his skin as a woman busted through the door with phone in hand, “GAH-ALYA! Ever heard of knocking!?”

Alya’s bright face dropped in annoyance as she looked him dead in the eyes and brought her hand up to knock on the door, the defiance clear in her face. The DJ only rolled his eyes and turned away allowing the girl to enter further into the makeup room.

“So let’s do this again.” Alya closed the door behind herself, “You aren’t going to believe what I’ve done!”

“Nothing illegal I hope…” Nino remarked rhetorically.

“Guess who met THE LADYBUG!” She leaned against the vanity, “THIS GAL!”

“What? No way- you’re cray-cray.” 

“I am not; first of all... second of all; besides the point. The major news is she’s coming back tonight for the competition debut!” 

“Do I want to know how you heard about the dance-off?” He grabbed another shirt and tossed a jacket at her for her costume. 

“I’m the club’s social media advisor, so I know many things.” Alya grabbed it mindlessly and slid it on, turning to adjust it in the mirror.

“‘Know?’ or ‘Found out?’” The sly tone of his voice he already knew the answer. 

“Again- besides the point.” She waved off his words as her approached her from behind to grab his (blue) and her (black) cans of face paint.

“One day those Lois Lane detective skills of yours will get you in trouble, babe.” He passed her paint before started rubbing blue paint onto his face with a brush.

“I won’t stop till I know the truth.” She stated as she applied the paint across her eyelids to form a mask. “I like to think it’s one of my finer talents.” Nino only snickered and put his brush down, grunting when Alya suddenly rammed her elbow into his gut. After finishing her eye paint, she reached for a small tube of lilac lipstick. “Laugh now Bubbles, you’ll see when Ladybug shows up tonight.” 

“I’ll be sure to keep my eyes peeled.” The DJ watched as Lady Wifi finished primping before swooping down and pressing his lips against her freshly painted mouth. 

The kiss was only a matter of seconds before he pulled back and jumped back out of the woman reach.

“NINO!” She screeched, “YOU SMEARED MY LIPSTICK!”

“I was trying to help even it out!” He couldn’t keep his face through the lie, the smirl stretching around his face. The woman merely pouted and turned back to the vanity to try and save the purple coating.  
“Hey,” His voice caused her to look in the mirror to see his form poised against the door frame, his amber eyes softening to a look she knew was saved only for her, “Love you.”

Pausing in her efforts, caught off guard by his sudden sincerity, Alya’s cheeks tinted with uncontrolled blush, “Love you too.” 

Satisfied with her reaction, the DJ down the hall; leaving the woman to bury her face in her hands,trying to hide the smile that wouldn’t disappear the rest of the hour.

\----

Ladybug was met by her partner as soon as she entered End Over End. She had just high fived Tikki as she moved off for the catwalk stairwell when her vision was suddenly covered by two black hands and a seductive voice near her ear whispering, “Guess Who?”

“A silly Kitty perhaps?” She joked as she pushed his hands off her face, turning to see her partner. His green eyes gleamed with happiness, like a cat that just hat it’s ears scratched. 

“Guilty as charged,” He stretched his arm up over his head casually, “So what brings you here on this lovely evening? Besides me of course.”

Ladybug merely rolled her blue eyes, “I heard from an undisclosed source that tonight would be interesting.” 

“Really? I heard the same.” His green eyes raked over the crowded room, “Lets hope our sources are true. Until then though,” He extended his gloved hand nobly, “Shall we dance, My Lady?”

Before the two were able to agree, a figure had appeared on the elevated dance floor. The floor appeared covered in a white tarp, clean and pristine as was the figure standing in the center. It was hard to tell who the person was as they had a half-face respirator that obscured most of their face and circular tinted goggles covered their eyes. Thier clothing consisted primarily of a white hoodie with zigzag lines across the middle of the chest and arms. The white hood pulled up but tomato red hair peaked through, giving little about his identity away. 

“Who is that?” Ladybug asked generally when a female popped up by her side in purple lips.

“Newcomer.” She said, rattling off details while Chat nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden presence, “Calls himself “The Illustrator”; not a big breakdancer- probably a novice.”

“Well, I guess we’ll learn soon enough.” 

“My Lady who is this?” Chat recovered and turned to face the dark skinned woman who leaned against Ladybug’s shoulder, his usual position.

“Why Chat, you’re not the only one who has connections to this underground.” Her smile was teasing as the crossed her arms coyly. 

“You can call me Lady Wifi tomcat.” The woman smiled coquettishly before leaning over to whisper into the her friends ear, “Thanks for coming, after we met on that bus I thought I’d scare you off.”

“Thank you for the invitation, had we not met I wouldn’t have known.” 

Blue bell eyes winked as the lights of the club dimmed, casting a spotlight on the figure, the journalist left to dutifully record the act. As Ladybug waved her off, she heard Chat huff and crossed his arms. “Aww what’s a matter kitty?” She cooed teasingly, “Getting jealous over a friend?”

“No of course not My Lady.” He replied before looking at his partner in his peripheral, “...She knows who you really are, right?”

Ladybug sighed, “Chat you know that it’s better we remain anonymous.” 

Chat turned to look at her with this look on his face which clearly conveyed that wasn’t what he meant but was cut off by a large spotlight lighting up the dance floor.

The figure was now grasping a labeless spray cam rimmed with red. A string techno pulse blasted through the speakers and the figure started to shake the can in his hand and began to move, applying the paint to the ground behind him as he walked. As the music picked up with sound riffs and soft voices, he grabbed more cans of black, green, gold and silver and started flipping and spinning, sending the spray in seeming random directions all over the area. 

Watching the figure was like magic and the crowd on the floor was stunned to silence as the song and dance continued for several minutes. In a few minutes the catwalk viewers started to cheer, clearly seeing what was forming from their perspective.

Once the cans were emptied and the music winded to a climax to end, the figure reached into his pockets and pulled out a small remote, clicking a button that shined a light on one of the brick walls. The light projected a bird's eye view of the dance floor with the figure in the center, revealing its creation to the floor and just why the crowd was so excited.

It was a large canvas and on it was Ladybug and Cat Noir and the two dancers were speechless.

The crowd was applauding, cheering and hollering at the artist, who was given a microphone as he removed his respirator and lifted up his goggles to reveal purple tinted skin and a black mask painted on their face, smudged by the eye protection. 

He pushed his hood back to reveal his face fully and spoke into the mic, saying a simple “thank you”, waving to the crowd as he walked off stage, men coming by to gather up the canvas and supplies. 

“Wow! That was amazing!” Ladybug gushed as Chat couldn’t help but agree. There was no way this night was going to get any better.

\----

A few hours passed by mindlessly as the crowd was now in the swing of the music and atmosphere. They’re hands had started sweating again, they knew it was from nerves and they had to wipe them on his suit pants to keep the mic from falling from his trembling grip. They needed to get a hold of themselves, they could hear the commanding voice pounding in their ears

_“Nooroo, you must announce the competition tonight. Make sure Ladybug and Cat Noir enroll. Then we must decide my champions.”_

_My master is quite strict_ , They think as a want rushes through them to be anywhere else but here right now. They closed their amethyst eyes and breathed a deep breath, and thought of happier times-of friends and dancing and of… freedom…

“Excuse me, Mr. Mariposa,” The DJ had walked offstage, “It’s time for the announcement.” 

_I can not disappoint my master…_ Shocked back into reality, the purple figure controlled his fight or flight response they tightened the grip on their mic, “Thank you.” 

\----

LISTEN UP B-BOYS AND B-GALS!” 

Ladybug hopped up to join Cat Noir looked up at the stage, resting an elbow on his shoulder, as DJ Bubbler echoed his voice over the crowd.

“HOW’S EVERYONE DOING TONIGHT!?” The crowd roared in response, including a certain pair of making the DJ smile elatedly. 

“NOW IMMA-BOUT TO BRING OUT SOMEBODY WHO WANTS TO GIVE YOU ALL A CHALLENGE THAT COULD MAKE YOU A LITTLE GREENER. GIVE ‘IM A END OVER END WELCOME!”

The room erupted again with cheers and thunderous applause as a wispy man dressed in stunning lilac suit. Tikki and Plagg, from their respective positions, immediately stopped clapping and froze in shocked stupor. 

_No, It can’t be-_

_What the hell-_

“What fabulous applause,” The figure spoke suavely, automatically gaining the attention of the building without having to raise his voice, “Clearly the reputation of this establishment proceeds itself.” 

He raised the mic to his mouth, “Now I have watched this scene for many months and I must confess, you nocturnal entertainers have blown me away with your skills, your energy and-” He looked into the crowd and met the wide eyes of Ladybug and Cat Noir pointedly, “-your talents. You are all gifted individuals with dreams of sharing with the world and I have just the proposition for all of you.”

Chat Noir didn’t like where this was going, “My Lady, who'd-” 

He looked over when he was shushed by an entranced Ladybug her blue eyes sparkling. 

“My sponsor, Hawkmoth, has granted me the opportunity to create a competition to showcase the best End Over End can offer. One night with a group based breakdancing competition to be the best of the best and to sweeten the deal, the winner team will walk away with 10,000 euros!”

The crowd went nuts after hearing the the promise of money and Chat had to blink himself, that was quite a bit of money. He wondered what kind of sponsor could afford to give away such money so frivolously. 

Ladybug on the other hand had only heard the sum and her mind started racing, “10,000 euros…”

“The details of registration and sign up are available on End Over End’s website as we speak.” The purple figure placed a hand over their heart and bowed, “We look forward to seeing you there.” The figure retreated off the stage and seemingly disappeared behind a backstage door, leaving an vibrant in its wake.

“Competition huh?” Chat pondered aloud, “Interesting idea, what do you think LB?”

“We have to win.” 

Her poignant response caught him off guard and he turned to see her bright eyes darkening with determination, “My Lady are you alright?” 

Ladybug seemingly took a step back and took a deep breath, “I… I can’t really explain but… with that money, heck even a quarter of that money, I could make my dream come true. Chat will you enter this competition with me?” The look in her eyes was strong and something like fear flashed through them. 

He had never seen her like this before- she looked like she was poised on the edge of a cliff, ready to either walk away off the edge. He didn’t like that look, he wanted to pull her close and tell her everything would be okay. So he did the next best thing.

“It’s always an honor to dance with Ladybug.”

“W-what?” She staggered, “Really, you’d compete with me?” She looked confused, “Don’t you want the money?”

“Well... the competition definitely sounds like a purr-fect opportunity for some fun.” Chat wanted to tell her he had enough of money since he could barely walk but that seemed unimportant right now, but being closer to the mysterious Ladybug would be worth all the euros of Paris. 

He caught his balance as the woman suddenly launched herself at him in a hug, “I… Thank you Chat.” He could feel her smile into his shoulder, “You have no idea how much this means to me.”

The blond returned the hug automatically, closing his eyes to enjoy the feeling of hugging the woman he had fallen oh so badly in love with.

“Uh am I interrupting something?” The two turned to see the artist from earlier who was now standing beside them. Up close it was clear he was a male, and had dark brown eyes that bugged Ladybug like a flashing light, something she had seen before... 

“Oh! No! That’s okay!” Ladybug immediately diverted her attention and missed the look of pure sadness that crossed Chat Noir’s face. “I loved the artwork! It was phenomenal!” 

“Thanks, getting one’s name out requires riding the highs of some trends.I apologize for not asking first for permission for your likenesses for my work.” He lowered his head almost ashamedly. 

“Apology accepted.” Chat replied off handedly.

“Yes, well, what you both think of the competition?” Either he didn’t notice Chat’s menacing snarl or was choosing to ignore it.

“It looks interesting, I definitely want to compete- I’m entering with Chat Noir!” The red lady cheered as she explained, making sure to smile at her partner in a silent attempt to get him to behave. 

“Surely with the two of you together you’ll be unstoppable but have you reviewed the rules yet?” He pulled out a phone to show the two of them and Chat’s eyes got to the line of information first.

“Group applying must have at least three people!?” Chat immediately understood where this was all going, “...You’re asking to be our third partner?” 

“I was merely offering it as a suggestion, the instant anyone hears you both will be swarmed with people begging at your feet to be the third part of your duo.” He crossed his arm casually, “I’m just offering you one of many offers to come.” 

Ladybug curled her lips in thought, “You’re right… we need to be careful who we choose as our third partner. How about this-” She pulled out her phone, “Exchange numbers with me; once we make a decision I’ll inform you.” 

The Illustrator nodded and switched information before the red haired artist had to leave. He waved off the pair and only Ladybug waved him goodbye. 

“You could have been nicer to him.” LB commented once he was out of sight.

Chat only rolled his eyes and replied, “You give your stranger your number, but not your trusted partner. That’s fine… makes complete sense…”

The pigtailed woman puffed her cheeks and exhaled, “Okay I get it- I’ve been a closed off partner. I am- was very concerned about keeping my identity secret. I know you think I don’t trust you... but I do Chat I really do.” She extended her hand with the phone out, “Let’s exchange numbers.”

Chat literally his heart skip multiple beats and for a split second he questioned his reality, “...really?”

“Yes.” She confirmed, “No joking, no backing out.” Suddenly the light in her eyes dimmed ever so, “Unless… you changed your mind.”

Chat blinked once then twice and took her phone to create a contact for himself and send himself a text to get her number. He quickly returned the phone before shoving his hands in his pockets, “...Thanks LB.” 

She only smiled in return before looking at a new message from her phone from Tikki, symbolized by only a “T” and the ladybug emoji, reading- 

_Time to go, seriously need to start planning :D Remember to tell the cat where the studio is! :p_

Ladybug sighed, “I gotta go, we can meet up at my dance studio to discuss if who we want as a third partner. I’ll text you the address later on tonight.”

“Sounds pawsitively delightful.” He smiled as she left for the door, before looking up and seeing Plagg on the catwalk smiling down at him and waving him towards the door.

\----

_Hey Kitty, the address is 7629 Breech Way, know where that is?_

_I can figure it out, google maps is an absolutely purrfect modern invention you know._

_Oh please don’t start with the puns, I can barely take them when we're in public._

_Very well, I won’t abuse my newfound privilege, my Lady. May I bring my dance coach along, he’s dying to meet the famous Ladybug in person ^.^_

_That’s okay, my coach will be there as well- also I will be in costume as well to protect my identity._

_Then I’ll do the same, fair ground._

_Cool! See you tomorrow night then?_

_Until then LB I’ll count the seconds._

_Please don’t…_

_So far I’m up to 45_

_Please D:_

_110 :p_

_Chaaaaaaattt I have to go to sleep_

_Haha okay then, goodnight and sweet dreams Ladybug_

_Goodnight Chat_

\---

The night wind leaked in through the window, casting a cooling breeze over the empty streets. Tikki loved the feeling of the wind in her short locks, the tips of her hair tickling her neck and cheeks. It reminded her that the world was constantly moving, constantly going forward- that she was moving forward. With the world speeding by, day by day, it reminded her to play along and to keep going. 

“UGH TIKKI THIS WAS A MISTAKE!” 

The red haired woman sighed as she rolled her eyes, her student had be wavering back and forth between excitement and dread ever since they started waiting for Chat Noir to show up. Marinette had comically dramatic highs and lows, ranging from pure euphoria to bone chilling dread and could flip between these two on a dime. It reminded her of another melodramatic...

“Marinette, it’ll be fine.” Tikki consoled her as she paced inside the hallway, “Everything will be fine.” 

“What if it isn’t? What if Chat shows up and I trip and crash into him and break his legs? Then we won’t be able to enter the competition and he’ll hate me and probably sue me! It’ll be a disaster!” She was already waving about wildly before crumbling into a heap with her head in her hands. 

Tikki sighed and got off the ledge to crawl inside and picked her off the floor and held her up straight by her shoulders, “Marinette- deep breaths. Everything is going to work out fine. I’ll be here in case anything goes wrong. Trust yourself, alright? I trust you.”

Marinette breathed a sigh of relief, “Thanks Tikki. You always know what to say.” It was then the Marinette’s phone started to ring. Going to pick up the phone, the girl answered it casually and started to head for the fire escape to bring in the new guests.

Tikki smiled and proceeded to move out to the floor to stretch.

\---

Chat was very surprised when he and Plagg arrived at the abandoned building.  
“Heh like looking in a mirror,” Plagg commented slyly, “Well kid, you know how to pick ‘em.”

Chat scowled as his teacher snickered at his own comment, the phone pressed to his ear, “Very funny Plagg-” He was about to continue when a voice answered the call, saying they would be there in a second. “She’ll be down- now please be nice,” He sniffed in the man’s general direction, “You did use those breath mints I gave you right?”

“Hey, you and I have gotten used to the camembert smell and yes, yes I did. Don’t worry kid,” The man smirked, the sharp points of his canines peaking out, “I’ll be an angel.”

“I just don’t want my partner to pass out from the scent.” The blonde grumbled and suddenly both heard a voice from above. The figure descended down the fire escape lightning fast and met the pair on the ground. 

“Hi Chat.” Ladybug greeted.

“Hey LB, this is my coach Plagg.” He introduced the two as the mentor removed a hand from his hoodie pocket to greet the young woman. Marinette shook the hand properly but the name stuck out in the back of her mind, stabbing her like a pin, reminding her of something important.

After the two properly met, they followed the red and black dancer up to the proper floor. Walking down the hall, Plagg’s cell suddenly started to vibrate and he stopped to answer it, leaving the two kids to head for the studio. 

When Ladybug owned the door Chat was surprised again for multiple reasons this time. One- the studio was really bright and warm compared to his studio, the red walls were vibrant and energizing and the mirrors were freshly cleaned. Second- there was a woman in the room who was stretching; her weight resting in her forearms as she stretched her legs in the air above her head. It rather entrancing to watch and her form was the perfect combination of balance and grace. The third, and most important, surprise was ego the woman was. He recognized the red hair and blue eyes from ind place and the weight of the realization hit him like a freight train. 

This was Tikki- Plagg’s long lost partner and declared love. 

The universe loved to mock. 

Now Adrien knew this was going to end horribly. He had no idea what Tikki’s side of the story was and he knew asking would only lead to more questioned that would put him in a really bad light. So when Tikki got up, he reached out to shake her hand only to get a friendly hug in return, he was blindsided by what to do next. 

“So you must be the famous Chat Noir I've heard so much about.” The woman smiled warmly.

“Aw, you talk about me LB, I knew you liked me.” 

“Yeah in your dreams kitty.” Ladybug rolled her blue eyes up to the ceiling before turning to address her mentor, “I showed them up, Chat’s coach-”

“-is out in the hall answering a call.” The blonde finished her sentence rather quickly, “I'll go get him!” Sooner than a blink, the black clad lad fled the room, leaving the girls alone and slightly confused.

“Yes- YES I know I’ll get back to you soon with an answer.” Plagg resisted the urge to snap into the phone before hanging up sharply, “Thanks for your patience.” 

“Plagg!” The boy came jogging out of the room to stand before him, “I think this was a bad idea.”

“Bad ide- Kid you've been raving about this girl for weeks! I am not letting you back out now!” The man frustrating snipped before head towards the studio, pushing the boy aside, “Just follow me and it'll be fine. Trust me.”

Adrien tried to reach up and stop him but it was too late and the male stepped inside. 

“Sorry, I had to handle a…. Call…” _...Oh god…_

Green and blue eyes met and the world faded away to darkness. Both couldn’t do anything; it was like their brains had short circuited. Breaths caught, pupils dilated- you could hear a pin drop and nothing but the wind whipped about outside the walls. 

After a few moments of silence Adrien finally entered the room with a very confused Marinette who worriedly asked, “Soooo, you two know each other?” It was as soon as the words left her mouth she remembered where 

It was then Tikki fell to the floor. 

\---

“TIKKI!!!” Marinette and Plagg screamed at once and instantly she got back up.

“SORRY! Sorry! T-This wasn’t something I wasn’t expecting.” The woman explained to Marinette as she tried to calm her as she moved to hold Marinette who looked like she was about to pass out herself. 

Plagg at this point had snapped out of his stupor and was cursing every being in existence for a swing of luck he couldn’t decide was bad or good. 

Chat Noir decided to move the situation forward, to distract from the elephant of the room, “So LB, you got a plan for all of this?”

After recovering, Ladybug nodded, “Okay, we need to review the rules of the competition in detail and decide if we want multiple partners or just one and who that would be.” She looked over expectantly at Tikki who cleared her throat and began talking to the group present.

“Yes, I’ve examined the rules in detail and there should be no reason for you two not to be able to apply and participate under anonymity as long as other real identification can be given. The registration begins in two weeks with the final competition at the end of the month. To participate in the major prize there needs to be teams of three to four people registered as a team. There will be other smaller contests leading up to the final round, including duo dances and challenge dances.” Tikki explained.

“The third partner needs to be chosen carefully,” Plagg spoke up, causing Tikki to look at him in surprise, “If your identities will need to keep hidden, you’ll have to work with someone you can trust fully- both of you.”

“Seeing your popularity is high,” Tikki piggybacked off his words, “You’ll no doubt be getting many offers over the next few days from many serious dancers. You should take all of them into account when making a decision.”

“So we give it a few days to get more offers,” Chat summarized, “then we can make a decision on who gets to be in the winning team.” After sending a wink and smile the girl’s way, “Now that we have that settled I think we have to address the elephant in the room.” He directed his attention to the two adults now avoiding looking at each other.

Both looked up but Tikki spoke up, “What?”

“If we’re gonna be working together,” Chat spoke sternly, “You two are going to have to get along.”

Ladybug nodded, “You guys need to have a long-awaited… talk.”

Plagg looked slightly surprised while Tikki looked thoroughly unnerved. Both went to look at each other then once again looked away again. 

The two students looked at each other and started to whisper, “This isn’t going to end well.” “Maybe they need a little push?”

“You both are dancers yes?” Ladybug recalled.

“Yes we… we are.” Plagg responded with Tikki’s eyes locking to face the far wall.

“Then maybe you should go back to something familiar, like dancing?” 

Plagg only turned to look at his one partner, seeing her reaction perking up in concern. 

“Yeah, you guys should dance something, something that you both know.” Chat agreed, “If you want we’ll leave.”

“We will?” The pigtailed girl questioned only to clue in when he glared at her, “Right, we will! We’ll leave you to your private catching up!” The two gathered their things and left the studio.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” Ladybug asked her friend as they sat the rickety staircase.

“I think Plagg is willing to try.” Chat stated confidently, “If he willing to put in effort, I think miracles can happen.”

\-----

The dark skinned man and the fair skinned woman stood in the studio alone, in silence. The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with anything sharp… a knife, a sound, a breath.  
The man took that breath and started to speak…

“I know you didn’t want to see me.”

“I…” Her voice was scratchy and she swallowed, “I wasn’t expecting this.”

“Expecting to see me again? After everything that happened- I don’t blame you.” 

“I understand if you hate me.” Her voice cut deep into old wounds neither of them knew still existed.

“I don’t hate you.” He spoke freely, “I could never hate you.” 

“Maybe you should learn to,” Her tone didn’t rise, it kept that firm, responsible pitch that she always had, “I certainly don’t deserve such kindness- and let’s be honest here; neither do you.”

He pursed his lips and crossed his arms, “You always thought you knew what was best, even if it was horribly skewed.”

“Skewed in the eyes of others maybe, we were always selfish.” She spat, trying to keep her tone level, “I was always selfish.”

“I was never any better… and I can explain-only if you’d listen to me.” His words softened as he reached for her body. He was about to touch her when she suddenly turned around and grabbed his hand, preventing his hand from coming any closer. Watching closely, Plagg then took a step closer and the two fell into the arm frame of a waltz. From his closed lips, the purr of a simple melody filled Tikki’s ears and with his leading step forward, the pair traveled a few steps in the ancient box frame of the waltz, gently spinning and orbiting the room. With each step, Tikki fought back tears-flashes of happy memories filled her head and when he rolled her out in a spin, she suddenly yanked her hand out of his crying out into the empty night.

“No!”

The word ripped through any peace the two might have had. His green eyes lost all their light and she backed up a step and wrapped her arms around herself.

“I...I-I mean,” She sighed and turned away, “Maybe later.” WIth that she walked out of the studio and let the door close behind her numbly. 

Plagg remained frozen in place, arm outstretched as if she was still standing in front of him.

\---

The two students sat on the edge of the fire escape ever so gently leaning on each other, slightly sleeping with the warmth of each other’s bodies keeping off the chill of the air. The two awoke to the shaking of the staircase indicating someone was climbing down. When they separated, Plagg jumped off the lowest balcony onto the ground with the grace of an ally cat.

“Hey Plagg,” Chat greeted, “Is everything okay?”

The dark man, who was faced the opposite was, took a breath and turned to face the kids with a small smile, “Yeah, we’ll see you later Ladybug?” 

The girl nodded slowly, her gut sinking as the older man walked away from the building with his prodigy in tow. 

In the studio, Tikki leaned out the window and let the cool night air dry her tears.


End file.
